Online ad spend in the second quarter increased 13.8 percent from the previous quarter, while the cost of premium inventory increased 6.6 percent, run of network costs were up 2.7 percent and paid search was up 1.3 percent, according to the seventh quarterly study of media professionals conducted online by InsightExpress for Deutsche Bank in conjunction with MediaPost.

Nearly 8 of 10 surveyed media executives said clients spent more on online advertising in Q2 than in Q1; 18 percent reported no change. About 44 percent said keyword costs increased. Some 47 percent said CPMs for premium inventory increased; 47 percent also said run-of-network inventory costs had increased.

Execs allocated 32 percent of online display ad spend - 10 percentage points more than in Q1 - to portals: Yahoo (15 percent), MSN (10 percent), and AOL (7 percent). Niche sites (e.g., iVillage) received 31 percent; ad networks got 11 percent. Google received 65 percent of cost-per-click spending; Yahoo, 25 percent; MSN, 8 percent.