• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, February 27, 2002

Speaking to the World Association of Newspapers' annual Newspaper Advertising Conference, Matthew Owen, an analyst with the investment bank Morgan Stanley said "Advertising isn't an investment priority. We assume it will come back. We assume it will be feeble in 2002 but will come back in 2003."

Mr Owen said the cyclical downturn in the advertising market, particularly in North America and Western Europe, was exaggerated by the huge advertising boom in 2000 and early 2001. "Over the last two years, we've gone through a phenomenon in terms of advertising that we will never see again in our lifetimes," he said. "We saw an extraordinary bulge in advertising expenditures in 2000 which led to a sharp decline in 2001. The absolute level of advertising this year and in the first two quarters of 2003 won't be so impressive."

During the two-day event, dozens of newspaper strategists discussed how they are coping with, and in some cases thriving in, the current market.

In Denmark one newspaper asked 100 top advertising clients to criticize their performance, and then acted on their responses. In France, the regional daily La Dépêche du Midi re-defined the concept of "neighbourhood" to extend its reach through the internet and other media. In Scotland, a business newspaper found new revenues in sponsored supplements, business directories and even a new lifestyle section.

And in the United States, the Chicago Tribune is developing new products with a firm view on readers' needs and readers' interests, and those of the advertisers. Tony Majeri Jr., Senior Editor for Innovation, said "We are learning how to create marketplaces that are interesting for the reader and… advertisers."

Summaries of all the presentations can be found here.