An advertisement for a bottled water brand starring a troupe of 'rollerskating babies' has become the most viewed online ad to date, clocking up more than 45 million hits.

And the viral ad, for bottled water brand Evian, has been recognised by the Guinness Book of Records for its achievement.

Having added together viewings of the ad's nine versions - including a series of ‘interviews’ with its toddler starts – across video sharing websites, the Guinness Book of Records has bestowed the honour on the ad for having 45,166,109 views as of November 9 2009.

The ad ties in with Evian’s “live young” strapline and shows babies performing a series of increasingly skilled roller-skate stunts, set to the tune of ‘Rapper’s Delight’.

The man behind the ad, Rémi Babinet, founder of BETC Euro RSCG and global creative director of Euro RSCG, told Brand Republic: “The Evian campaign has succeeded in proving that creativity can at the same time be very qualitative and very universal.

“In a climate of crisis and general gloom this advert shows that it can play the role of a positive spur in a depressed market.”

See the advertisement here.