Internet advertising grew in 2008, even though the U.S. economy slowed. A new report from PriceWaterhouseCoopers and the Interactive Advertising Bureau indicates online ad revenue grew 10.6 per cent to $23.4 billion US.

Search advertising is the principal area of growth within the online sector. It increased 19.8 per cent to more than $10.5 billion. Display advertising, meanwhile, was relatively flat --- $7.6 billion, up from $7.07 billion a year earlier --- an indication that advertisers are not finding it the best choice at the moment.

Digital video advertising, relatively small in the overall total, more than doubled in the year to $734 million from $324 million.

But an indication of challenging times is in the data: a mere 2.6-per-cent growth rate in the fourth quarter.

A Slideshare presentation of the IAB report is attached.