U.S. Digital Ad Spending to Exceed $37 Billion in 2012, Lead Gen Declining

Online AdsAccording to estimates from eMarketer, digital ad spending in the U.S. will surpass $37.3 billion this year. This would reflect 16.6 percent year-over-year growth from the $32.0 billion spent on digital advertising last year. Naturally, Google, Yahoo!, Microsoft, Facebook and AOL will claim about two-thirds of this year’s spending, or $23.9 billion in ad revenues. In terms of formats, search will continue to lead the way with 47.1 percent of spending this year, followed by display with 40.2 percent, classifieds and directories with 7.0 percent, and lead generation with 4.5 percent. Display is set to overtake search in 2016, while lead generation is expected to see its share of spending steadily decline, hitting 4.0 percent in 2016. (eMarketer)