A tough year for portals

I previously wrote about the growth of vertical properties and search engines in our 2007 media billings. The success of these two categories came at the expense of portals, which slid to 19% of billings in 2007, down from 24% in 2006. After being in high demand for several years, portals showed signs of weakness in 2007. With an ever-increasing number of quality advertising options, marketers have been moving aggressively to broaden their online buying. With more choices and more inventory available to advertisers, it has become increasingly difficult for large, established publishers to increase their share of budget. Another result of increased choice was slower growth in cost-per-thousand impressions (CPMs). In a year when average CPMs rose nearly 20%, prices on portals increased only 7%. In contrast, CPMs on vertical properties were more than 30% higher.

Make no mistake- portals continue to be very important and valuable properties for marketers. However, their prominence has been diminished in a landscape filled with good alternatives.