TV Ad Dollars Slowly Shifting to Web Video

Online video outlets are finally starting to chip away at television's hold on advertisers.

Starcom MediaVest, a big ad-buying firm, said it shifted more than $500 million out of TV over the past 12 months, three quarters of which went to online outlets. The agency, which is owned by Publicis Groupe SA said it is planning a bigger shift during this year's "upfront" ad sales negotiations with major TV networks. "For us, it's really about shifting to where audiences are" said Laura Desmond, chief executive of Starcom MediaVest, which buys roughly $40 billion in ad time and space annually on behalf of marketers such as Procter & Gamble and Honda Motor. "More and more people are spending time with other channels beyond the broadcast and cable networks," she added. While companies have been putting money into online video ads for years, few talked about moving TV ad dollars there. Rather, it usually came from their print and display ad budgets. But video content has been improving and audience measurement has improved, the two things have made marketers more comfortable with moving TV dollars, said ad buyers.