• by John Gaffney , January 14, 2003

It will be a big year for Spanish language TV and a bigger year for the Internet. That’s the latest from CMR/TNS Media Intelligence, whose new year ad forecast projects a rise of 3.3% in 2003, up to $117.5 billion.

"For 2003, we see a continued rise in ad spending," notes Steven J. Fredericks, president and chief executive officer, CMR/TNS Media Intelligence. "The spending growth seen in the last half of 2002 was clear evidence of a market rebound, and we believe the current economic upturn, while not robust, will continue to be reflected in the modest growth of advertising.”

The CMR differed from recent McCann and Zenith forecasts in that it predicted a strong first half. With no bump from Olympic TV spending, CMR says the first quarter of 2002 was disappointing outside of the Olympics. It does however, predict low growth levels for the third and fourth quarters, which will suffer in comparison top last year’s record amount of spending on the 2002 elections.

The report predicts 9% growth for Spanish TV, which continues to benefit from a rocketing audience and new brand spending. The Internet, which started with high hopes last year, is expected to grow 7%. Cable network revenue is pegged for a five percent jump. All other media are expected to range from 1 to 3% percent growth for the year.