Spend on internet advertising grows rapidly in the later to the game markets.

Global spending on internet advertising increased from $18.7 billion in 2005 to $24.9 billion (£12.6 billion) last year, according to ZenithOptimedia, the media-buying agency.

The Middle East and Asia are driving a boom in global advertising spending. Zenith predicted a spike of 7.7 per cent in spending in Asia in the run-up to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

In the Middle East and Eastern Europe, advertising spending is growing faster than in North America and Western Europe, which are maturing rapidly as advertising markets, Zenith said.

Source: Advertising on internet soars as world follows British lead-Business-Money-Broadband-TimesOnline

UK continues to lead the world in terms of percentage spend on internet.

Although spending on traditional media, such as magazines and radio, has been falling in the UK, more than £2 billion was spent on internet advertising in 2006. Online advertising accounts for 11.4 per cent of total advertising revenue in Britain, almost double the global average of 5.8 per cent and above the 7.8 per cent share of advertising expenditure in the US.

The nature of the spend

Most companies pay on a “per click” basis for search-based advertising, which means that they pay only for the leads generated by the advertisement.

Search engines are the fastest-growing form of online advertising and companies bid to be associated with keywords that are used in searches. The use of annoying pop-ups is declining, but new forms of online advertising, such as video streaming and expanding banners, are becoming more widely used. Behavioural targeting, in which advertisers follow consumers’ internet use, is another growth area.

World’s ten fastest-growing advertising markets

Predicted percentage growth from 2005 to 2009

Qatar 304.2

Egypt 220.7

Moldova 185.7

Romania 160.4

UAE 154.8

Pan Arab 146.8

Russia 143.2

Saudi Arabia 113.5

Kuwait 113.2

Slovakia 106.4

Source: ZenithOptimedia