Nielsen: Internet Advertising Grew 32% In 2013, But It’s Still Only 4.5% Of Spend Vs. TV At 57.6%

Nielsen put out its latest figures on the state of the advertising market this morning, and Internet advertising continues to be the fastest-growing medium, it remains a small player. Global advertising across the web, mobile internet and apps collectively grew by 32.4% in 2013 — by far the biggest leap of any media — but that still worked out to a 4.5% share of the overall spend in ads. In contrast, television grew only 4.3% but remains the behemoth when it comes to ad spend, taking nearly 58% of the market.

“While it comes as no surprise that Internet is the most rapidly growing media type for advertisers, television is still the leading medium by spend by a long shot,” writes Randall Beard, Global Head of Advertiser Solutions, Nielsen. “But the really exciting development is how the two can work together. We are consistently seeing advertisers turn to integrated campaigns to connect with consumers on multiple screens, reinforcing their messages strategically to maximize impact.”

Indeed, it’s a measure of why leading internet companies that have based their business models on advertising continue to look at ways of incorporating more video-related advertising into their overall mix.

The news comes in the same week that Google (the leader in internet advertising) and Facebook (which is now taking steps to become more of an ad network) will both be reporting their quarterly earnings. While Google owns YouTube, the world’s biggest online video site, Facebook, too, has been moving into video ads as well. And of course Twitter has hung its star on television for both audience and advertising growth.

Nielsen points out that one area where Internet is playing particularly strong is in the area of multiscreen and advertising across web, mobile and more, so we can expect to see more of a push in that area also from the big internet companies.

Elsewhere in the market, advertising remains challenged — with radio, newspapers, magazines and cinema all declining, and outdoor being the only other category to see any growth in 2013, at 5.1%.