Internet Ad Sales Rise 34%

U.S. Internet advertising revenue has exceeded $3 billion in a single quarter for the first time, the Interactive Advertising Bureau said Monday.

The $3.1 billion for the third quarter of 2005 was a 34% jump from the same period a year earlier. The previous record was just under $3 billion in the second quarter; online ad revenue breaks records most quarters.

The ad bureau projects that revenue for the year could exceed $12 billion, well above the $9.6-billion total last year.

Accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers compiled the figures on the bureau’s behalf.

The ad bureau did not release a breakdown for the quarterly revenue. In the past, search-based keyword ads contributed to much of the online ad growth.

“Clearly advertisers are realizing the benefits of shifting more of their total advertising budgets to online,” said David Silverman, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Nonetheless, online ads still represents a small portion of the total U.S. ad market, which was $71 billion during the first half of 2005, according to research firm TNS Media Intelligence.