• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, June 13, 2007

Recent advances in online advertising have yet to take advertisers' focus off TV, according to a new report from JupiterResearch.

"Neither relatively better targeting nor the increasing availability of branding-friendly rich media and video inventory have led to any demonstrable online cannibalization of TV spending," says David Card, vice president/senior analyst at JupiterResearch.

One reason for TV's continued ad dominance, according to Card, is the fact that so many consumers use the Web for communicating, rather than consuming content from either media companies or brand marketers.

"Over half of users' time online is spent in communications, like e-mail and instant messaging," he explains.

In the realm of social networks, where people mix connecting with friends and content consumption, brand advertisers should rely on sponsorships, widgets or branded microsites to make an impression.

"Sponsoring personal-page themes and widgets that entertain or offer exclusive access to content also makes sense for reaching potential brand advocates," says Emily Riley, analyst at JupiterResearch. "But it takes a light touch. Marketing can't be so intrusive that it risks creating negative brand associations."

In another finding, JupiterResearch found that advertisers continue to spend disproportionately on print, even as consumers increasingly overlook newspapers and magazines for TV and the Web.

Indeed, consumers now say they spend over 10 times as much time with TV and the Internet as they do with print media like magazines and newspapers. Still, newspapers manage to garner nearly three times the expenditure of online.

Both TV viewing and online use have increased during the past five years.

Online users spend as much time online as they spend watching TV, while users under the age of 35 spend more time online than watching TV, according to Jupiter.

Money spent on television advertising remains the clear leader among the marketing mix, with advertisers spending four times as much on TV advertising as on all online advertising.