Eventful Year for Ads

Ad expenditures across all media are expected to increase 4.2% compared to 2007, with growth attributable to Olympics-related and election campaign spending offsetting the effects of a weakening economy, according to a forecast released by TNS Media Intelligence.

National cable TV networks are among the segments expected to exceed the overall market average with a projected 5% increase in ad sales compared to last year, according to the report. Jon Swallen, senior vice president of research of TNS, attributed the growth of continued migration of viewers from broadcast to cable networks, a trend line hastened by the strike by the Writers Guild of America. Faster growth in audience share leads to higher prices for ad units, he said.

Election spending is anticipated to generate $3 billion in ad sales, Swallen said, adding that is a conservative estimate that could swell if there are no clear-cut leaders for the Democratic or Republican presidential nominations after the Feb. 5 primaries, or if a well-financed independent candidate joins the hunt for the White House.

All media are projected to achieve some measure of growth in 2008, with the exception of business-to-business magazines, which are expected to decline by 0.1%; and newspapers, which are projected to lose 0.9% of revenue from last year.