Global ad business begins recovery

New figures suggest that the global and North American advertising
market is entering recovery, swinging from a loss to a gain in 2010.

Global ad spending is expected to increase 3.5% this year, a more optimistic forecast than the 2.2% predicted in April, according to a report by ZenithOptimedia.

But the increase is still lagging compared to previous boom-and-bust cycles, the report notes. Advertising Age reports that the report states “A strong downturn in global ad expenditure has historically been followed by a sharp rebound three years later,” ZenithOptimedia said. According to the forecast, by 2012, the third year after the 2009 downturn, growth should equal roughly 5.3% — a smaller rate of recovery than has followed previous downturns, ZenithOptimedia said.

North America’s projected growth remains the smallest of any region. The report predictss a 2.2% gain for Western Europe, 5.8% for Asia Pacific, 10.6% for Asia Pacific excluding Japan, 7% in Central and Eastern Europe, 7% in Latin America and 6.9% in Africa, the Middle East and the rest of the world.

Advertising Age writes:

“By medium, TV performed fairly well during the downturn and is still collecting significant ad dollars in the recovery. Television will receive 40.8% of global ad spending in 2012, up from 39.2% in 2009 and 38% in 2008.

“But the internet continues its global climb, according to the forecast. Its share of overall spending should rise from 10.5% in 2008 to 12.7% in 2009 to 17% in 2012, just two percentage points below newspapers, which have lost share every year since 1987, ZenithOptimedia said. Paid search is the main engine of the growth in digital advertising, accounting for 50.2% of all internet spending last year and likely to represent 52.6% in 2012. New display ad formats — such as video, mobile and social media — should, however, help display stabilize its share.”