Pop-up blockers ‘have an effect’

The increasing prevalence of pop-up blockers is causing online advertisers to move away from the format, it has been revealed.

Pop-ups are advertisements which open in a new browser instance when a web user visits a particular page online.

But they are increasingly being prevented from appearing by pop-up blockers such as those which come with Internet Explorer or the Google toolbar.

New research from Right Media, a Yahoo! company, has detected a response among internet marketers.

Such individuals are now turning towards in-text formats such as the ‘medium rectangle’, the firm reveals.

In the UK some 30.5 per cent of ad instances in December 2007 were in the medium rectangle shape, compared with 12.1 per cent in September.

Right Media suggests this could be due to a desire among advertisers for more visible commercials within their content in the run-up to Christmas.

“As some formats lose popularity, others gain and this seems to be the case for medium rectangles,” comments international vice-president Denise Colella.

Right Media founder Michael Walrath said at the time of its acquisition by Yahoo! in July 2007 that he looked forward to the “accessible and vibrant advertising ecosystem” likely to be put in place following the deal.