Internet ad revenue $51.1 billion in 2012

What a booming industry! I just can’t stop being amazed. Internet advertising revenue is set to double from $25.5 billion in 2007 to $51.1 billion in 2012. This is according to IDC. Never heard of them? Who are they? Well they’re data people. I love data people. Stats people. Without stats how would we shape our businesses? According to themselves, at this link, this is who IDC is:

“IDC is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. IDC helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community make fact-based decisions on technology purchases and business strategy. More than 1000 IDC analysts provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries worldwide. For more than 44 years, IDC has provided strategic insights to help our clients achieve their key business objectives. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world’s leading technology media, research, and events company.”

They released a press release a few days ago titled: “IDC Finds Internet Advertising Keeps Growing Fast Despite Economic Difficulties” – and this is exactly what I’ve been talking about the past few days. The topic started when I heard a 567 Cape Talk radio show on which they were discussing the bad economic climate etc. Although I know this – from the news etc, I’m not feeling it, I’m not experiencing it. Later that day I discussed it with 2 of my contract developers, and they suggested that it’s probably because of the industry we’re in. People are rushing to do business online, despite economic difficulties, because other forms of marketing and advertising are just becoming unbearable in terms of cost. And further than that, offline efforts are not measurable, and not easily scalable. I know you’ve heard me say this more than once, but I truly love and appreciate being in this industry, especially now. It’s just the right time. The “ripe” time for the Internet.

I’ve just landed 2 new clients, 1 of them is something to write home about. All I’ll say now is that it’s in the sports arena, and it’s international. I’m pretty excited about this one – watch this space for more info once the project gets underway.

To end off, a quotation from the IDC press release:

Search advertising will remain the one advertising format that will garner the most revenue over the forecast period in the United States. This means that for any media company, search must be a key part of its strategy. Any media company that is not Google cannot ignore this segment even if Google is towering above all others as segment leader with about 70% share of the segment’s revenue.