A flurry of paid-search reports released Tuesday may have marketers’ heads spinning, but each provides insights into specific parts of the process.

SearchIgnite released the Q2 2010 U.S. Search Market Report Tuesday. Year-over-year paid-search spend increased 14% in the U.S., following an 11% YoY increase, sequentially.

Similar to Efficient Frontier’s report, SearchIgnite found retailers spent more — about 7% — compared with the prior year. Microsoft’s search engine Bing gained market share by 26% from the year-ago quarter, but declined 9.6% sequentially. Overall, Bing dropped slightly to 6.2% share of search spend in the U.S., while Google and Yahoo reached 78.4% and 15.4%, respectively.

Google increased the average number of paid-search ads shown per search session by 15%, followed by Yahoo at 22% and Bing at 11%. More premium ads in sponsored listings and down the right rail don’t necessarily suggest good news, however. Increasing ad coverage can diminish returns, and result in a poor experience for consumers, according to the report.

Relying on Google for metrics, the report suggests that consumers can withstand between 5.5 and 6.0 ads per search query. Yahoo now serves up 6.85, making it unlikely the increase in ads will lead to additional revenue. Bing serves up about 3.85 ads per keyword, so it’s “extremely” likely that this will reflect in better-than-expected revenues for the search engine. Similarly, Google went from 4.97 to 5.72, so they could report healthy increases as well.

Google now monetizes nearly 8% more of their keyword searches. Stokes says keywords searched with no ads decreased from 43.6% in Q1 to 39.7% in June, making the inventory easier to monetize.

In the Americas, paid-search spending by tech companies increased 12% during the second quarter, while the Asia/Pacific region rose 33%, sequentially. Combined, spending in Europe, the Middle East and Africa grew 25%. Google’s China strategy and move to serve content from Hong Kong has influenced performance. During the second quarter, Google’s share in the region dropped from 69% to 61%, while Baidu’s share of paid-search spending rose to 22% from 12%, sequentially. Read more at www.mediapost.com

Two Screens are Better than One Turns out two media are better than one in moving consumers from awareness to action. In a Nielsen  study of direct-to-consumer drug advertising, exposure on TV and online was more than twice as likely to prompt patients to ask their physician about the drug than Internet alone.

The study also found that premium in-stream video ads which aired as part of a full-length TV episode online generated significantly higher levels of ad recall and brand recognition than other Internet video, display or standard TV ads. Read more at blog.nielsen.com

According to the findings of the 2010 Digital Influence Index, by Fleishman-Hillard International Communications with Harris Interactive, when it comes to driving consumer decisions about a range of products and services, the Internet is by far the most influential media channel, but marketers have yet to capitalize on that influence.

Of the seven nations the study addressed, four reported the Internet to be the most important source of information. China ranked the web highest in importance, followed by Germany, Japan, and the U.K., placing it above advice from friends, family or coworkers, television, radio, newspapers, magazines, postal mail and e?mail. And though respondents spend a significant amount of time on the web, they still reported peer advice as an important information source. The Internet and peer advice tied in importance among Americans.

Net Importance Of The Internet Compared To Other Media (Net % of Respondents Considering Selected Media to Be Absolutely Essential or Extremely Important)     TV Radio Newspapers Magazines  Internet (not e?mail)  E?mail  China 3% ?18% 35% 6% 84% 68%  U.S. ?28% ?53% ?34% ?68% 1% ?4%  Japan 9% ?30% 8% ?22% 36% 16%  Germany 17% 9% 18% ?14% 52% 30%  U.K. ?26% ?54% ?54% ?66% 15% ?14%  France ?39% ?32% ?22% ?24% 10% ?18%  Canada ?36% ?43% ?26% ?62% 3% ?16% Source: Fleishman-Hillard International, June 2010; Net Importance calculated by subtracting Bottom 2 importance scores (not at all/somewhat) from top?three importance scores (Essential, Extremely, Very)   Detailed findings of consumer behavior in an average week: In the U.S., 42% of online consumers do not read magazines and 40% do not read a printed newspaper. In Canada, 42% of online consumers do not read magazines and 28% do not read a printed newspaper.  In the U.K., 36% of online consumers do not read magazines and 33% do not read a printed newspaper.  In France, 31% of online consumers do not read magazines and 28% do not read a printed newspaper.  In Japan, 29% of online consumers do not read magazines and 24% do not read a printed newspaper.  In Germany, 28% of online consumers do not read magazines and 26% do not read a printed newspaper.  In China, 5% of online consumers do not read magazines and 6% do not read a printed newspaper.     Read more at www.mediapost.com

The so-called third screen is increasingly finding itself at home alongside the TV and computer screens, according to a new study. The report, by media agency Initiative, found that 60% of mobile Web usage is now taking place at home, bringing smartphones closer to the promise of being “always on” devices.

Nearly a third (30%) of smartphone users start their day with the mobile Internet and 45% end their day with it, with the peak time for use while relaxing at home in the evening (64%). The only time Web use falls off dramatically is when people are actively engaged in other activities like sports or at live events.

“This clearly demonstrates how mobile Internet use has caused a significant shift in consumer need to have constant connection with the outside world,” stated the report, which based its findings on a survey of 8000 active smartphone users across Italy, Sweden, the U.K., U.S., Australia, China, India and South Korea.

See more at www.mediapost.com

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Despite America’s reputation as a nation of big talkers — the U.S. is not setting the pace in smartphone adoption — ranking third when ranked by penetration. Italy has the largest percentage of smartphone owners at 28%, while Spain is not far behind with 23%. France has the most room to grow, with an 11% penetration level.

See more at blog.nielsen.com

More than 113 billion searches were conducted in July worldwide, representing a 41% increase year-over-year, according to new data from comScore. Google was responsible for the vast majority of search activity, with 76.7 billion searches conducted in July, which represented a 67.5% market share. Yahoo ranked second worldwide with 8.9 billion searches, or a 7.8% share — followed closely by Chinese search engine Baidu with 8 billion searches, or a 7% share.

Globally, Europe accounts for the most searches, but Latin America is highest in searches per searcher. The dynamics of search behavior vary considerably across different parts of the world. Among the five global regions, Europe accounted for the highest share of searches at 32.1%, followed by Asia-Pacific — 30.8% — and North America — 22.1%. Notably, Latin America exhibited the heaviest search behavior per person with an average of 13 search usage days in July and 130 searches per searcher. Europe had the second-highest overall search volume per person — 117 searches per searcher — while North America exhibited the second-heaviest frequency — 12.5 search usage days per searcher. Read more at www.mediapost.com