Online ad spend up 25% - Canada

Online advertising should hit $1.5 billion in 2008, a 25% increase from the $1.2 billion spent in 2007, according to research from the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada.
Despite economic uncertainty, the IAB also points to other studies that suggest online advertising will continue to grow at a double-digit pace in 2009.
IAB has no data for the estimated growth of online advertising in 2009, but it cites a recent eMarketer survey which predicts a 15% increase in online ad spending in the U.S. next year, although other studies that take the recent economic downturn into account have concluded there will be zero growth in digital ad spending.
Each study had a different viewpoint of the industry, resulting in distinct forecasts, said Paula Gignac, president of IAB Canada. The total decline to zero in some studies is “a worst-case scenario, and should really only be considered to apply to the U.S. market,” said Gignac.
http://www.marketingmag.ca/english/news/marketer/article.jsp?content=20081111_173432_10276