Magazine Advertising Gains Pages and Dollars in March According to the recent release from the Magazine Publishers of America, total magazine advertising reported rate card revenue for
the month of March 2004 increased 6.7%, compared to March of last year. Year-to-date, rate card revenue closed at an increase of 7%, with ad pages showing a 2.3% decline at 48,191.71 versus last year.
Ellen Oppenheim, Executive Vice President/Chief Marketing Officer, MPA, said "We're seeing a shift in trends from the last couple of years. For example, the Financial, Insurance & Real Estate
category, which has been greatly impacted by the struggling economy, registered an uptick in March and first quarter overall. Conversely, a different spending pattern appears to be emerging in 2004
for Automotive, which includes launches scheduled towards the latter part the year."
March 2004 vs. 2003 Seven of the 12 major advertising categories recorded both page and dollar gains in
March.
| 2004 Dollars | % Chg | 2004 Pages | % Chg |
| Apparel & Accessories | 202,195,698 | 10.6 | 2,887.22 | 2.5 |
| Automotive | 190,805,281 | 4.1 | 1,917.78 | -7.9 |
| Toiletries & Cosmetics | 149,376,185 | 20.6 | 1,438.62 | 10.9 |
| Drugs & Remedies | 141,549,432 | -15.6 | 1,288.62 | -16.3 |
| Food & Food Products | 137,412,716 | 12.6 | 977.23 | 2.7 |
| Retail | 128,801,838 | 14.9 | 1,750.43 | 6.7 |
| Home Furnishings & Supplies | 119,171,519 | 3.4 | 1,317.36 | 1.1 |
| Direct Response Companies | 110,715,726 | 4.0 | 1,583.96 | -7.7 |
| Financial, Insurance & Real Estate | 101,327,024 | 25.6 | 1,108.44 | 13.5 |
| Media & Advertising | 97,698,724 | 13.0 | 926.90 | 1.7 |
| Public Transportation, Hotels &
Resorts | 92,951,133 | 15.1 | 1,405.70 | -6.0 |
| Technology | 92,655,909 | 0.6 | 1,046.86 | -4.0 |
January - March 2004 vs. 2003
Year-to-date, six of the 12 major advertising categories experienced an increase in both pages and revenues over March 2003.
| 2004 Dollars | %Chg | 2004 Pages | %Chg |
| Automotive | 439,816,206 | 3.0 | 4,262.88 | -9.8 |
| Drugs & Remedies | 380,401,146 | -3.1 | 3,328.04 | -8.4 |
| Apparel & Accessories | 354,400,187 | 13.1 | 5,193.90 | 1.6 |
| Toiletries & Cosmetics | 347,756,211 | 16.1 | 3,243.57 | 7.9 |
| Food & Food Products | 335,120,169 | 7.2 | 2,328.57 | 0.1 |
| Direct Response Companies | 308,319,296 | 5.1 | 4,328.49 | -5.1 |
| Home Furnishings & Supplies | 294,890,630 | 5.1 | 3,153.26 | -0.1 |
| Media & Advertising | 265,061,497 | 10.2 | 2,448.81 | -2.7 |
| Technology | 226,172,159 | -0.3 | 2,742.64 | -6.2 |
| Retail | 218,270,364 | 11.7 | 2,980.63 | 1.4 |
| Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts | 208,590,147 | 20.5 | 3,208.25 | 1.7 |
| Financial, Insurance & Real Estate | 204,094,506 | 11.7 | 2,344.80 | 1.8 |
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