Union Jack digs the tubes

Online ad spend in the UK rose 38 percent in 2007 and is expected to surpass TV spend this year, reports BusinessWeek.

According to a joint study from the Internet Advertising Bureau and PriceWaterhouseCoopers, online budgets hit 2.8 billion pounds in 2007, up 38 percent from the 2006 level and the second-largest portion of ad budgets in the UK, accounting for 15 percent of spending.

In 2006, online made up only 11 percent of ad spending.

Spend in 2008 is expected to hit £3.5 billion, a level that would make online the biggest ad outlet in the country, ultimately eclipsing TV ad spend. £4 billion will be spent in 2009, according to the forecast.

The study attributes much of that growth — nine times faster than in the overall industry — to the prominence of ad networks that facilitate ad buys across a broad range of sites.

Online spend is also expected to benefit from relative low prices, which are attractive to marketers in tough economic times.