World Magazines Outlook From FIPP/Zenith

Magazines attracted 19.9% of ad expenditure in 2000; the research forecasts that they will take 20.1% in 2002 and 20.0% in 2004. Except for the occasional small fluctuation, magazines have held on to their 20% share of European ad expenditure since 1994, despite strengthening competition from television, outdoor and the internet, notes Zenith.

“Publishers have achieved this by developing a steady stream of new titles, by improving their existing titles and by consolidating. This has allowed them to reach new readers, gather them in groups defined by sharing common interests, and sell them more efficiently to advertisers,” reads the report.

North America In the US, on the other hand, magazines are suffering from a long-term loss of market share to television and outdoor, media that have yet to reach their full potential. In Canada, though, magazine publishers are still improving sales practices and research methods; publishers in the US are keen to improve as well, but there is not much left for them to do, says Zenith.

Magazines have suffered more than any other major medium from the ad recession in the US. Ad expenditure in magazines fell 10% there in 2001, and has continued to fall in 2002. Most of the decline can be attributed to the sharp reduction in ad expenditure by luxury brands, which normally spend heavily in magazines; this was compounded by a 6.0% drop in total circulation. Zenith does not expect US magazine advertising to return to growth until 2004, and even then it may not keep up with general inflation.

Canadian magazines coped very well with the drop in corporate confidence and economic slowdown in 2001. Their overall revenues rose 5.3% and advertising expenditure in magazines rose 13.8, while the market as a whole fell 4.1%. Canadian magazines still have plenty of room left to grow: in 2001 they attracted 6.8% of all ad expenditure, just over half the world average of 12.7%.

Latin America Latin American magazines suffered a 4% drop in ad expenditure in 2001. The political crisis in Argentina was responsible for much of this decline – directly, by severely damaging Argentina’s economy, and indirectly, by scaring off international investment, including ad expenditure by multinationals. By 2004 it is expected that magazines will have increased their share of ad expenditure to 8.8%.

Asia Pacific Magazines are now gradually losing share of the ad market in Asia Pacific. The financial crisis in 1997 and 1998 dented international confidence in the region, then the recent worldwide slowdown squeezed the supply of capital. Budgets are shifting from magazines to television. While the shift has been noticeable, though, it has not been very large: in 2001 magazines attracted 8.3% of advertising expenditure in Asia Pacific, compared to 8.5% in 1998. By 2004 we expect magazines to attract 7.7%.