553 mln pounds spent on online advertising in UK in 2004

Opera Economic & Media Forecast predicts the online advertising marketplace will be worth 699 mln British pounds in 2005, a 26.2% increase over this year's total of 553 mln pounds.

Over half of all UK homes now have access to the internet and the rate of new connections is increasing (according to latest figures from Oftel). There are now 12.8 mln online households within the UK (to June 2004). The main driver for the acceleration in take up has been broadband. Due to the competitive nature of the broadband market, and falling prices, this strong growth (particularly from upgraders from narrowband services) is likely to continue. In terms of profile, the online audience still has a slightly male bias, with 54% of users being men, it also maintains its upmarket profile with 63% of users falling within the ABC1 demographic category.

Opera anticipates that in 2005, search will account for 50% of all online revenues.