According to the monthly Internet Advertising Report from AdZone Research, with information on online ad spending from more than 2500 websites worldwide, the latest figures available show that Online advertising expenditures totaled $696.2 million for September 2004, the highest figure since April 2004.

Black Friday marks the beginning of the holiday shopping frenzy, as well as the period when retailers begin earning a profit on yearly sales. While this still holds true for offline retailing, online shopping visits reached a record high this year on Thanksgiving Day, with Black Friday coming second.

According to the recent release from the Leichtman Research Group, the twenty largest cable and DSL providers in the US - representing about 95% of the market - achieved record net additions in the third quarter of 2004. LRG found that combined net additions for the quarter totaled over 2.3 million subscribers - a total that slightly exceeded the previous record set in the first quarter of 2004. The top broadband providers now account for over 30.9 million high-speed Internet subscribers, with cable having nearly 18.8 million broadband subscribers, and DSL having close to 12.2 million subscribers.

Newspaper advertising expenditures for the third quarter of 2004 totaled $11.3 billion, a 3.8 percent increase over the same period a year earlier, according to preliminary estimates from the Newspaper Association of America. Classified advertising led the way with a 4.3 percent spending increase to $4.0 billion. National ad spending increased 3.9 percent to $2.0 billion and retail spending rose 3.5 percent to $5.3 billion.

Discount airline web sites are receiving increasing visits from US Internet users, and travel research is less inclined to be initiated from a search engine than it was a year ago, according to a new study by Hitwise. Bill Tancer, Vice President of Research at Hitwise, said "The data indicates that consumers are becoming more sophisticated in their online travel shopping. Having gained familiarity with the top online travel agencies, hotel sites, and airline sites, they are less likely to initiate travel research and purchasing from a search engine."

The November Consumer Intentions Study by BIGresearch, finds that, after peaking for the year in the months leading up to the election, worry about political and national security issues has lowered three points in November to 24.6%, and those who say they are very confident/confident in the chances for a strong economy in the next 6 months rose slightly in November to 45.4%.

A new study conducted for the American Advertising Federation (AAF) reveals that More than three-quarters of advertising leaders now believe that digital video recorders (DVR), which allow viewers to skip ads, will have a significant effect on the landscape of TV advertising, with continued growth of non-traditional ad formats.

In the more than 80 metropolitan markets surveyed regularly by The Media Audit, the 50 plus age group is increasing in numbers, increasing in affluence, increasingly better educated and spending more time shopping online. The 80 plus metro markets surveyed have a combined adult population of more than 130 million and 47.4 million are age 50 plus. "The (50+) group has grown," says Bob Jordan, president of International Demographics, "from 35.6 percent of the adults in our metro markets in 2000 to 36.4 percent in 2003. Although that rate of growth is not significant, it is steady and will continue."

A deep look at toys and games online with top sites, advertisers, user demographics and ad sizes and delivery styles.

In the 80 plus metropolitan markets surveyed regularly by The Media Audit, 46.0 percent of adult Hispanics or 8.5 million access the Internet regularly and 19 percent or 3.5 million are heavy users (430 minutes per week or more) of the Internet. Bob Jordan, president of International Demographics, notes that "Hispanic adults (age 18 plus) who frequent the Internet are considerably more affluent than other Hispanics and adults in the general population."