A study by the Internet Advertising Bureau contends that, for the first time, more money is being spent on online advertising than on outdoor. UK revenues from online ads rose a remarkable 62 per cent on a like-for-like basis to £490 million in the first half of 2005, giving online advertising a 5.8 per cent share of the market, compared to 5.1 per cent for outdoor. ‘These results have surpassed our expectations,’ hoots Guy Phillipson, chief executive of the IAB in the UK. ‘At the end of 2004 the IAB predicted online would overtake outdoor by mid 2006 and we’ve beaten this target.’

The internet aside though, the general outlook for the whole advertising industry remains weak, proclaims ZenithOptimedia, which has just downgraded its forecast for UK ad spend. Real growth was just 0.5 per cent, just clear of an advertising recession, said Adam Smith, head of knowledge management. ‘The only media to gain share in 2005 were cinema, outdoor and internet.’ ZenithOptimedia points the finger at the downturn in high street spending as the main cause for the slump, calculating that the ‘faltering housing market and the prospect of tax rises’ may well prevent a rapid revival. It could be a long hard winter on media street.