Depending on who’s talking, online video advertising is either in dire straits or just about to turn the corner. paidContent:UK has a story today pointing out that, though web advertising is still growing,  the UK online ad spend only grew 17% in 2008 versus 38% in 2007. Given the economic situation, that’s no surprise; the good news is that analysts across the board are predicting that online ad spending should stablise in 2009 while other forms continue to decline.

That’s due in part to the fact that online video advertising offers narrow targeting that television simply can’t match. In this video from Streaming Media Europe 2008, advertisers and advertising technology providers discuss online video advertising’s opportunities and challenges, and how to maximise that targeting capability. Moderator is Coull CEO Ifron Watkins, who was chair of the Interactive Advertising Bureau in 2007-2008; panelists are Nationwide Building Society senior advertising and promotions manager Nicola Sztuka, TurnHere Inc. CEO and founder Brad Inman, TicTacTi Ltd. founder and CEO Eyal Margalit, and Real Time Content CTO Ian Cameron.