Dubbing market research the new "star" of the advertising world, ZenithOptimedia Group this morning predicted research would outpace global marketing spending through 2008 as "advertisers seek to
improve return on marketing investment and offset the risks inherent to media fragmentation." The prediction, which was released as part of the agency's revised advertising forecast, estimates
research now accounts for about 6 percent of global marketing spending, but will rise at an annual rate of 11 percent each year through 2008. -- Joe Mandese