Online advertising rates are actually going down, a new survey from AdKnowledge shows.
Internet advertising rates in September fell to their lowest since last
December, when it started tracking such data, the company said.
AdKnowledge said the dip partly reflects a surplus of online space relative to
advertiser demand. In other words, the number of businesses advertising
online is growing, but the number of Web sites that are looking for
advertisers
is growing faster.
The failure of advertising rates to show any substantial rise during a time
when Internet use has exploded, could suggest businesses are getting smarter
about the value of online advertising, rather than just throwing money at the
Internet, Reuters said.
“Rates may have been artificially high to begin with,” said Michele Schott,
director of marketing communications at AdKnowledge. “I think everybody is
just feeling their way.”
The survey showed Internet advertising rates in September fell to $36.29
CPM or cost per thousand, compared to $37.84 CPM last May, and $37.21 CPM last
December.
AdKnowledge officials cautioned against reading too much into the average
advertising rates, since they fluctuate widely from site to site. It said
certain
technology and computer Web sites were commanding CPM rates of more
than $75, while other lesser-known sites sold ads at a CPM of less than $1.
Travel-related Web sites showed a sharp increase in ad rates over the past
few months. CPM on sports sites was little changed, and shopping sites
showed a slight decline.