• August 23, 2005

Demand for ad pages in the U.S. business press continues to be soft, according to June 2005 ad page estimates released Monday by the Business Information Network, a unit of American Business Media. B-to-B ad pages rose 0.7 percent in June vs. June 2004. Through the first half of 2005, pages in the business press have risen 1.8 percent. The ABM, however, noted that total ad revenues grew at faster rates, suggesting either that the cost of ad pages has been inflating, or that B-to-B publications are deriving more advertising revenues from other sources, including online and digital sales, as well as conferences and events. Combined revenues for June rose 3.3 percent over June 2004, while year-to-date figures are up 3.6 percent. The government (local, state, federal) and banking, financial, insurance categories led the pack with 18.9 percent and 15.0 percent increases in revenue, respectively, in the first six months of 2005. -- Joe Mandese