Total Japanese advertising expenditure was down by 5.9% in 2002, the second successive annual fall, according to the leading ad agency Dentsu.
Total adspend for the year was £29.6 billion but revenues fell across the board as the market failed to recover from the estimated 0.9% decline in 2001 (see
Japan Advertising Falls 0.9% In 2001).
The impact of the World Cup, held in Japan and Korea, failed to counteract the downturn in the Asian economy and many corporations reduced their advertising budgets. Newspaper advertising bore the brunt of the slowdown with revenues down by 11% year on year while television adspend slipped 6.4%.
As elsewhere, online expenditure was hit with internet revenues falling 15%. Direct mail and sales promotion fared better with incomes down by just 3.3%.
The nigh-on 6% decline in overall revenues was worse than had been envisaged by the likes of Zenith Optimedia and ABN Amro. Given the uncertain economic climate, it remains to be seen whether analysts’ projections of growth in 2003 come to fruition.
| Japanese Advertising Growth Forecasts |
| |
|
|
|
| |
Month |
2002 |
2003 |
| Zenith Optimedia |
September 2002 |
-3.0 |
1.9 |
| Lehman Brothers |
September 2002 |
-0.9 |
0.9 |
| ABN Amro |
November 2002 |
-3.8 |
0.6 |
| Universal McCann |
December 2002 |
-6.0 |
5.3 |
| Source: Various, as noted |
