ZenithOptimedia has revised down its 2011 global advertising spending forecast by half a percentage point due to slower economic recovery in developing markets and continued fears of a double-dip recession. Still, total ad investment this year is expected to improve 3.6% to $466 billion, up from $450 billion last year, with digital media continuing to drive growth.
In the U.S., total ad spending on major media is projected to grow 2.2% this year over last year.
The shaky global economy has “caused some advertisers to trim back budget increases planned for the end of 2011, but there has been no sign of the canceled campaigns and sharp budget cuts that signaled the beginning of the last advertising downturn in 2008,” the research firm said.
The outlook for next year is also unclear, as ZenithOptimedia scaled back its global forecast growth to 5.3% from 5.9%. U.S. ad spending is projected to grow 3.5% in 2012 versus this year. The ad market in 2012 will benefit from events including the Summer Olympics in England, the presidential election in the U.S. and Japan’s recovery from the devastating tsunami of this past March.
Internet continues to be the fastest-growing medium, next year accounting for 17.2% of total global ad spend, up from 15.8% this year, per the firm. Television will continue to grab the largest share of ad dollars, at 40.5%, up from 40.2% this year. Share for radio, cinema and out-of-home is expected to remain virtually unchanged year-to-year, while newspaper and magazine publishing are projected to continue losing share.
