• by Masha Geller , November 26, 2002

Don’t know how I missed this on Monday, but here’s an uplifting piece of information to ponder over the holiday weekend. Global Insight, Inc. has announced the results of a new forecast on advertising trends in the US for 2002 through 2006, which forecasts a 6% increase for 2003 in spending, a remarkable turnaround for a market that suffered a 6% fall in 2001 (which, Global Insight felt compelled to remind us, was the worst decline in 20 years.)

The good news is that the study concludes that radio, cable television, and – this is the most uplifting part - the Internet will be the major beneficiaries of this increased spending. Global Insight predicts these media outlets will experience annual average increases of 10%, 7%, and 16%, respectively, between 2002 and 2006. Newspapers, outdoor advertising venues, and broadcast television will also benefit, but at more modest rates of growth. The researchers predict that increased advertising spending by the entertainment, wholesale trade, and other services sectors will be the primary sources driving this growth.

As John Rose, principal and manager of the Global Insight's media practice, said, “This is very good news for the advertising market in general, and a ray of light for the economy as a whole. Hard-hit media companies such as AOL/Time Warner, Disney, and Viacom will feel substantial relief in 2003, as corporate profits improve and increased retail sales drive advertising spending throughout the year and on into 2006."

And on that positive note, on behalf of all of us at MediaPost, let me wish you Happy Thanksgiving. We’ll be back on Monday, ready to face the rest of the year and whatever lies ahead.