Internet Ad Revenue Totals $31B in 2011, Up 22%

It’s official: 2011 was the year of mobile – and search and display advertising.

The Interactive Advertising Bureau’s Internet Advertising Report, prepared by PwC U.S., reveals that digital advertising revenue totaled $31 billion in 2011. That represents an increase of 22 percent over 2010.

Mobile advertising was the fastest growing segment, hitting $1.6 billion in 2011, more than twice the amount spent in the prior year.

Search advertising accounted for the largest category at $14.8 billion; that represents 46.5 cents for every dollar spent on digital advertising in 2011.

And display advertising totaled $11 billion in 2011, a 15 percent increase compared to 2010. However, it accounted for a slightly smaller portion of all Internet ad spending: 34.8 cents for every dollar spent in digital advertising in 2011 compared to 37 cents in 2010.

“Pushing past the $30 billion barrier, the interactive advertising industry confirms its central place in media,” IAB CEO Randall Rothenberg said in a prepared statement.

The report, prepared by PwC U.S., also shows that fourth quarter revenue for 2011 totaled $9 billion, a 20 percent year-over-year increase compared to $7.4 billion in 2010.

Here is the breakdown for 2011:

	2010 In billions	2011 In billions	Year-over- year change*
Search	$11.7	$14.8	26.6%
Classifieds, directories	$2.6	$2.6	-0.7%
Lead generation	$1.3	$1.5	15.0%
Email	$0.2	$0.2	9.2%
Mobile*	$0.6	$1.6	149.0%
Display
Digital video	$1.4	$1.8	28.8%
Ad banners	$6.0	$6.8	14.2%
Sponsorships	$0.7	$1.1	56.1%
Rich media	$1.6	$1,3	-14.6%
Display, total	$9.6	$11.1	14.9%
Total, Internet ad spending	$26.0	$31.7	21.9%

*Dollar amounts rounded to the nearest billion; percentage changes are calculated based on numbers rounded to the nearest thousands (000).