Total revenue among leading US internet publishers grew by an average of 47% in the third quarter as against the same period in 2001, according to a recent study by the Online Publishers Association (OPA).
A survey of eighteen major online publishers, including New York Times Digital, Wall Street Journal Online and USATODAY.com, also showed that revenue for the first nine months of 2002 was up by an average of 36% on last year’s figure. Ad revenue for the year-to-date grew by an average of almost 24%.
“These results confirm that high-quality content sites are continuing to capture an increasing share of online advertising dollars,” said Michael Zimbalist, executive director of the Online Publishers Association. “These results demonstrate that online divisions of established media companies are emerging as engines of growth in an otherwise lacklustre economy.”
In the meantime, ten European online publishers have decided to follow the example of the OPA and set up their own organisation to raise the profile of internet advertising. OPA Europe will consist of The Guardian, the Financial Times and a number of prominent newspapers from France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain.
