New York, Oct. 13 (Bloomberg) -- DoubleClick Inc. shares fell as much as 39 percent after the largest Internet advertising company said that sales will slow during the next six months, and its third-quarter loss widened. Internet ad spending in the fourth quarter won't be as ``frenzied'' as it was last year, and it will slow in the first quarter as usual after the holiday season in the U.S., DoubleClick Chief Executive Kevin Ryan said in an interview today. The New York-based company first said sales would slow on a conference call with analysts and investors late yesterday.
``There's no question the Internet advertising market is a tough market right now,'' Ryan said. ``Dot-com companies are spending less on TV, radio and also cutting back on Internet spending.'' Ryan sees advertising sales increasing after next March, he said.
Spending Declines
Money flowing into Internet companies from initial public share sales and investments has slowed, so online advertising won't grow as fast in the next few quarters as it did in the past year, Ryan said. The Internet advertising industry will consolidate over the next few months, Ryan said.
``Everybody has finally figured out ... banner ads don't work. Nobody clicks through,'' said Sandi Lynne, who manages $13 million in investments for Milford, Pennsylvania-based Hemp Lane Ltd. Partners. The company doesn't own DoubleClick shares.