Internet Ad Revenues Exceed $3B/Quarter

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Publishers' revenues from Internet advertising hit another record in the third quarter of 2005, surpassing $3 billion for the first time. That's according to new figures from the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

The third-quarter numbers were a $3.1 billion, a 33.9 percent increase over the year-ago period, when revenues totaled $2.3 billion. The quarter was also up sequentially, coming in 4.7 percent over the second-quarter's $2.9 billion total.

Pete Petrusky, director of advisory services at PwC, attributed the rise to the medium's ability to do advertising, marketing and branding, noting that the continued high growth rate is especially impressive because the overall numbers are higher.

Researchers say total 2005 revenues could surpass $12 billion. Last year's full-year revenues came in at $9.6 billion.

The IAB and PwC didn't release further details about spending in the third quarter, saying they'd provide breakdowns when they issue their full-year report. The researchers compile their report by surveying publishers.

Internet advertising hit its last similar milestone -- $2 billion in revenues -- back in the second quarter of 2000, right before the dot-com bubble burst.