In the January 24/08 edition of The Economist, Schematic CEO Trevor Kaufman appears as a proponent of the idea that an economic slowdown will accelerate the shift in ad spending to the Internet. From the article (”The Hard Sell”):

“The internet’s interactivity and wealth of product information make it the best means of generating short-term sales—whereas television is best for long-term brand-building. During a downturn clients see internet ads as easier to measure and hence easier to justify to shareholders, says Mr Kaufman.”