The Interactive Advertising Bureau offered further evidence that online ads were not immune to the wider economic downturn, pointing out that during the first six months of 2009, spending in the category fell 5.3 to $10.9 billion. In keeping with that figure, Q2 online ad spending was down 5.4 percent to $5.4 billion. In a webcast hosted by the IAB with its research partner PriceWaterhouse Coopers, sought to put the numbers in context by pointing to Nielsen’s recent finding that total U.S. ad spend fell 15.4 percent during h109. Still it was no surprise that online was affected as it was. This summer, the IAB noted that Q109 represented the industry’s first decline in several years, as revenues dropped 5 percent to $5.5 billion.

As for individual segments, search brought in about $5.1 billion h109, up about 2 percent from that same period last year. Meanwhile, display totaled nearly $3.8 billion during the period, showing just a small decline of 1.1 percent from a year ago. Sponsorships, which had been growing over the past year, has shrunk and is not likely to turn around for a while. The only bright spot remains digital video which gained 38 percent in h109, though the spending there comprises a narrow slice of the online ad pie at just $477 million.

During the webcast, the IAB and its partners tried to offer some glimmers of hope for the latter part of ‘09, with marketers typically spending 52- to 54 percent over their online budgets during the final six months of the year, said PwC’s David Silverman. But as the economy’s recovery remains uncertain, that usual boost can’t be counted with as much certainty.

• TNS: Packaged Goods Ads Pushed Display Ad Spending Up In H109
• IAB: Online Ad Spending Fell 5 Percent In Q1; First Drop In Several Years