Online advertising gets a rise

The relatively young online advertising market in Viet Nam was worth US$15.5 million last year, an increase of 71 per cent over 2008, according to a report by Cimigo, a market research company.

Cimigo said the internet now played a significant role in Vietnamese lives both personally and professionally and had therefore become an increasingly important way for advertisers to reach their target customers.

“More than half of the urban population in Viet Nam is online, and users spend more than two hours on the internet every day,” said Lukas Mira, Cimigo’s online Director.

Despite the rapid rise in the number of internet users, advertisers were still sceptical about using the Web to promote their products and services, he said.

Only a small proportion of a company’s advertising budget was spent on online marketing in Viet Nam, far lower than in other Southeast Asian nations, he added.

“Just 50 US cents per year is spent on online advertising per internet user. China spends 15 times that amount,” said Brian Pelz, co-founder of Vinagame and a member of the Internet Architecture Board (IAB) steering committee in Viet Nam.

“This report ["Viet Nam Online Advertising Revenue Report 2009"] would help advertisers, websites, agencies and the online ecosystem quantify where the market is going so we can plan and invest appropriately,” Pelz said.

Cimigo operates throughout the Asia Pacific region.

VIETNAMNEWS

Tags: Vietnam Online advertising