Internet advertising revenues reached $5.8 billion in the first quarter of 2008 - an 18.2% increase from the year-earlier period and the second-highest quarter recorded after the previous quarter’s record $5.9 billion, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) said.

“The cyclical fourth-quarter-to-first quarter drop in traditional media advertising spend, combined with an overall economic slowdown, resulted in a not-so-unexpected first-quarter slowdown in the growth of online advertising,” said David Silverman, partner, Assurance, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

The New Media Group of PwC produced the “PwC/IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report” for the first quarter.

“The fundamentals of interactive advertising spend continues to be positive, and I would expect to see continued growth in the future,” Silverman said.

That sentiment was echoed by Randall Rothenberg, president and CEO of the IAB: “We expect growth to continue, as consumers spend more and more time online, and marketers find more - and more innovative - ways to reach them through digital media.”