Euro Online Advertising Up and Rising
After a healthy 2004, this year is expected to be even more robust.
Overall growth for Europe’s online advertising market was an impressive 30 percent in 2004, totaling 2.1 billion euros ($2.8 billion), according to JupiterResearch.
Looking forward, Internet advertising is expected to increase 28 percent in 2005 to 2.7 billion euros ($3.7 billion). Steady growth is expected to continue through 2008, when total European online advertising will reach 3.8 billion euros ($5.0 billion), said JupiterResearch analyst Julian Smith.
That report is commensurate with findings by Nielsen//NetRatings. It found the volume of banner ads on European Web sites increased 24 percent last year; from 76,375 in November 2003, to 94,939 in November 2004.
“Since the fallout 24 months ago, there has been steady growth in online advertising in Europe,” said Barney Farmer, sales and marketing director for Nielsen//NetRatings in the UK. “But in 2004, we saw better-than-expected growth numbers, and traditional creative like banner and skyscraper ads were definitely an important part of that.”
Sweden, France, and the Netherlands led European growth in banner ads, each registering over 30 percent increases. Italy, the UK, Switzerland, Denmark, and Austria weren’t far behind, showing growth between 25 and 30 percent. Lagging were Germany, Norway, Spain and Belgium, all of which experienced growth of 10 percent or less.
| Growth in the Number of Banner Ads, Nov 2003 to Nov 2004 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Country | Growth Percentage | ||
| Sweden | 55% | ||
| France | 41% | ||
| Netherlands | 34% | ||
| Italy | 29% | ||
| UK | 27% | ||
| Switzerland | 27% | ||
| Denmark | 26% | ||
| Austria | 25% | ||
| Germany | 10% | ||
| Norway | 10% | ||
| Spain | 9% | ||
| Belgium | 8% | ||
| Source: Nielsen//NetRatings | |||
The number of online advertisers, meanwhile, increased 11 percent, from 15,716 in November 2003 to 17,441 in November 2004. The number of Internet ad campaigns in Europe increased 10 percent year-over-year from 33,472 in November 2003, to 36,824 in November 2004.
Germany, the UK, and Italy dominate the top 15 list of online ad publishers in Europe, with German search engine Meine Stadt taking the number one position with 1,106 advertising campaigns.
| Top 15 Online Ad Publishers in Europe | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Country | Web sites | Number of campaigns |
| 1. | Germany | Meine Stadt | 1106 |
| 2. | UK | Yell.com | 817 |
| 3. | Italy | Fuorissimo | 766 |
| 4. | Italy | Italia DVD | 488 |
| 5. | UK | MSN United Kingdom | 460 |
| 6. | Germany | T-Online Germany | 433 |
| 7. | Italy | Virgilio | 371 |
| 8. | UK | Find.co.uk | 341 |
| 9. | UK | Tiscali United Kingdom | 326 |
| 10. | Italy | Free Online | 320 |
| 11. | Denmark | Alt om København | 297 |
| 12. | France | Portail Express | 287 |
| 13. | UK | UK Shopping city | 275 |
| 14. | Germany | MSN Germany | 270 |
| 15. | Sweden | Aftonbladet | 252 |
| Source: Nielsen//NetRatings, AdRelevance (i), Europe November 2004 | |||
Top advertisers on European Web sites, include the German and UK versions of eBay; France’s discount e-commerce portal PriceMinister; German online insurance firm HUK24; and the UK’s Daily Telegraph.
“The interesting thing about Europe is that growth has been quite heterogeneous, when you itemize it country by country,” Jupitermedia’s Smith said. “Whereas the UK has to date led growth across the continent, Germany, despite its size, is still lagging behind. Not all of these countries are growing at the same rate.”
