TV or Internet Advertising: Which one annoys you more?

     “Are you one of those people who put those annoying ads up?!”  That’s the reaction I usually get when I tell people that I did advertising for CNNMoney.com.   In the past few years I’ve seen internet advertising evolve where now more dynamic rich media display units are constantly being introduced.  Although advertisers love that and demand it, does it come at a cost? 
     I stumbled across an interesting article in the Guardian that talks about how the internet is close to overtaking television as the most complained about advertising medium in the UK.  The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), who monitors consumer complaints on advertising content, said the YOY increase is typically 25% for all UK advertising.  Since last year, complaints on the number of internet ads by consumers have jumped by 300%!  The article claims this was due to the ASA changing its criteria to include investigating marketing messages on a media owner’s own website, which thus increased the number of complaints it recognizes.  This jump puts internet advertising in close range to dethrone television which is currently the most complained about advertising medium.  But I have to think that this solely can’t be the reason.  As more publishers are rushing to fill empty spaces on their website with ad space, we see that this can directly impact the user experience.  As more homepage takeovers, overlays and expanding rich media units are becoming more intrusive, one has to wonder if this could also be a cause.  Advertisers are increasingly asking us to push the envelope and come up with new placements to reach its target audience.  Gone are the days when advertisers were ok with just leaderboards (728x90) and large rectangle units (336x280). Now they seek out such units as: filmstrip, pushdown, sidekick, slider, peel back, short tail, 3D Glider, Hover ad etc… (http://www.iab.net/risingstars)  Although annoying for visitors, it’s considered effective for advertisers because it gives them a crucial element they seek; brand recognition. You may hate it (Geico caveman commercials) but you’ll remember it.  
     Surprisingly in the article, while YOY complaints in internet advertising spiked by 300%, television in comparison; saw a decline of 20%.  Could this be due to the large number of people using DVRs now and bypassing commercials?   I know I’m one of them.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/may/30/internet-overtake-tv-complained-about-ad-medium