VOICE: Adrian Moss, CEO, Dealgroupmedia

'The impact of broadband on internet marketing and advertising has so far been marginal, but all that is about to change':img:/images/adrianmoss.gif

On the day when Tiscali announced the launch of 'pay as you go' broadband and an uncapped 1 Mbps connection, BT announced its latest basket of broadband services saying they would, "transform the use of broadband in the UK... as the broadband battle moves from access to content".

It was sweet music to those of us in the online marketing business who believe we have only seen the beginning of a surge in the scale and effectiveness of internet advertising and its potency in brand building, thanks to the spread of broadband.

At present, the Internet brings in 2% of total UK ad spend - twice the amount spent on cinema advertising. The Interactive Advertising Bureau forecasts this will reach 4% by autumn 2007 - the current rate of ad spend on radio.

This could turn out to be a conservative estimate as broadband delivers richer media and more emotive TV-style messaging to a growing audience that is spending more time online. To bolster this position, the online industry will continue to improve its metrics to provide ever more refined and quantifiable marketing analysis.

According to the Forrester, Consumer Technographics report for Q4 of 2003, the Internet has now overtaken radio in the UK for media attention. British adults spend an average of more than eight hours a week on the Internet - about an hour more than they spend listening to radio. The rise of time and usage is closely reflecting the rise of broadband, with nearly four million (12 per cent) of UK households using fat pipes.

The impact of broadband on internet marketing and advertising has so far been marginal, but all that is about to change. Mass access to broadband is the biggest opportunity - and challenge - for online advertising since the first banner ads appeared ten years ago.

The arrival of widespread broadband represents the Web's next level of delivery capability and is one step closer to providing a comparable medium to TV and other 'above the line' advertising and promotional channels.

Although the Worldwide Web created a paradigm shift in how the Internet was perceived and interfaced, the speed and 'always on' tendency of domestic broadband should significantly improve the quality and manner in which content is delivered and therefore the Web's ability to distribute brand and promotional messages to UK consumers. At last the Net can become the channel everyone thought it would be before the bubble imploded.

The impact of broadband can be split into three separate elements, each having a different effect on the consumer - speed, content and constant availability.

The speed of connection undoubtedly provides a better user experience, with people spending much more time online. It also makes more things possible in terms of downloads of information and generally longer exposure to marketing messages. There is a greater willingness to 'click here' to see and hear the message when it is delivered at a speed approaching full-motion video - not a seemingly endless wait for another 'timed-out' session.

There is also a shift in content type linked to faster speed of connections, with content providers less inhibited about using streaming video and other high bandwidth media to convey their messages. The gap between TV and the Internet could shrink with more music and TV type content being accessed and delivered via the broadband connection.

And then there is the 'always on' nature of broadband. With no marginal costs to being online, cost obstacles are eliminated and usage should increase significantly. This will require improvements in content to maintain the interest of the user, but the winners in content provision will be rewarded by retention of the users and hence enhanced revenue opportunities.

In the past few years we have seen a widening demographic of the UK internet user base. Acceptance of this media by the bulk of young and middle-aged population is signalled by the adoption of broadband outside of the 'computer literate' early adopters. It is not a geeky thing anymore - it's simply a part of life, with people banking, shopping and carrying out any number of traditional buying habits online.

The widened demographic makes for a more attractive advertising audience. It should act as a catalyst for those marketing directors that hitherto had not considered the UK user base to be representative. The opportunities for a range of marketing activities including market research, sampling strategies and the building of targeted consumer databases are really too big to be ignored. Couple this to increasingly sophisticated metrics and performance-based programmes and the Internet looks like an irresistible combination.

It is interesting to ponder if Boo.com would still be with us if broadband access had been more widespread a few years ago. Part - only a small part - of its downfall, lay in that it tried to be too clever, too early. Offering customers the ability to zoom in on a product, with the majority of people using 56 kbps dial-up connections created unworkable delays for an online retail format.

In general, the online advertising arena will be materially strengthened by the high penetration of broadband connections in the UK. There is, however, a threat to the full benefits being realised. Expectations by broadband users for quality content will increase. Internet users may expect more than the Internet has been asked to deliver so far - and of course content includes advertising.

12/03/2004: