UK Online Ad Spend Surges

Online advertising spend in the UK increased 52 percent in the first half of 2004 compared to the same time period in 2003, reaching a half-year total of $429 million, according to the February Online Market Report by Starcom UK. That amount represents approximately 3.4 percent of total advertising spend in the first half of 2004.

The UK’s online growth was led by the explosive increase in paid search advertising, which Starcom estimates grew 109 percent from the first half of 2003 to the first half of 2004. Paid search reached a six-month total of $216 million, or 32 percent of all online ad spend in the UK.

“Paid for search is a must for all advertisers with a Web site,” the report concludes. “For those with products to sell it offers ROI unattainable by most media channels. For with brands to push it helps complete the journey between brand exposure and brand experience.”

Starcom’s figures gel with a recently released report by JupiterResearch which identified the UK as a leader in driving online advertising growth in the European market. Overall, JupiterResearch said, European online advertising increased 30 percent in 2004, totaling $2.8 billion.