US social networking adspend to fall 3% in 2009
Total social network ad spending in the US will fall 3% to $1.1 billion in 2009, from $1.2 billion in 2008, according to a new forecast from eMarketer.
The primary reason for the change is a projected falloff in ad spending on MySpace, which accounts for nearly one-half of US social network ad spending. In December 2008, eMarketer estimated that marketers would spend $630 million to advertise on MySpace in the US in 2009. Now eMarketer projects that US ad spending on MySpace will reach just $495 million this year, down 15% from the estimated $585 million MySpace generated in 2008.
Debra Aho Williamson, eMarketer senior analyst, said: “Although ad spending on social networks is diminishing, marketers are still very focused on using social networks for other purposes, such as public relations or customer relationship management.”
Estimates for ad spending on MySpace and Facebook outside of the US show that marketers are expected to spend $520 million to advertise on MySpace in 2009, with $495 million coming from the US and $25 million from other markets.
International spending on Facebook is expected to reach $70 million this year, for a total of $300 million in 2009.
Last month, a poll of 2,220 US adults by Harris Interactive found that almost half (48%) of US adults have either a MySpace or Facebook page, with 16% of adults updating their page at least once a day (see Almost half of Americans have a Facebook or MySpace account).
Also in April, a report from Netpop Research revealed that social networking among US broadband users has grown an impressive 93% since 2006, and has increased the amount of time people spend communicating online 18%, to 32% of total online time (see Social networking increases among US broadband users).