US SEM revenues surpass $5bn
Revenues from search engine marketing in the US soared by 44 per cent to more than $5 billion (£2.8 billion) in the first two quarters of 2008.
This is according to new figures released by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in their latest report, which also indicated growth of 15.2 per cent for overall online advertising revenues.
Total internet ad revenues equalled $11.5 billion, while income from the display ad sector rose by 33 per cent to a figure of $3.8 billion, which included video, banner, sponsorship and rich media ads.
Meanwhile, revenue from referrals and lead generation totalled $806 million and classifieds income equated to $1.6 billion, the IAB said.
"Due to the unique efficiency and effectiveness of targeted and measurable campaigns, internet advertising has shown strong growth in the first six months of 2008, compared to the same time period last year," David Silverman of PwC said.
He noted that this growth came in spite of an increasingly pressurised environment for the overall ad sector.
The UK Internet Advertising Bureau recently revealed similar positive growth for the British online ad industry, with spending on the medium reaching almost £1.7 billion in the first half of the year in the UK.
