U.S. Ad Spending Decreased in First Quarter

NEW
YORK, June 6: Total advertising expenditures in the first quarter of 2007
decreased by 0.3 percent to $34.93 billion as compared to the same period in
2006, according to TNS Media Intelligence.

“After
a sluggish January, the pace of advertising expenditures picked up slightly at
the end of the quarter,” said Steven Fredericks, the president and CEO of TNS
Media Intelligence. “We also must recognize that 2007 first quarter results are
adversely affected by comparisons against last year’s Winter Olympics. However,
after factoring out the incremental contribution of special events, it is
apparent that core growth rates have slowed further from last year’s lackluster
levels.”

Internet
display advertising posted a 16.7 percent increase to $2.70 billion, as
marketers continued to expand their online programs.

Cable
Network expenditures were up 6.3 percent to $3.82 billion, with niche interest
channels pacing ahead. Broadcast TV comparisons were adversely affected by the
absence of the biennial Olympic Games event. Network TV ad spending tumbled 7.2
percent to $6.05 billion while Spot TV expenditures slipped 4.1 percent to
$3.74 billion.

Consumer
magazines advanced 7.1 percent to $5.17 billion, while Newspaper and Radio
media continued to significantly lag the overall market.

Looking
at the share of spending by media, Internet display advertising surged to 7.7
percent of total expenditures, up from 6.6 percent a year ago. Magazines gained
0.9 share points and finished the period at 19.2 percent of ad spending,
swapping places in the rankings with Newspapers, which lost 0.8 points.
Television lost 1.1 share points but still accounted for 44.6 percent of all
expenditures.

During the first quarter,
the top 10 advertisers spent a combined total of $4.36 billion, an 8.0 percent
reduction from last year as market leaders in key industry segments pared their
budgets. Procter & Gamble, AT&T and General Motors ranked as the
top-spending advertisers.