WPP is to acquire a 25% stake in Shanghai Advertising Agency, a major full-service advertising agency in Shanghai, China, the group announced today. Shanghai Advertising, one of the top 10 advertising agencies in China, was established early in China’s advertising history by Shanghai East Best International Group, which will continue to hold 50% of the… Continue reading WPP Takes 25% Of Shanghai Advertising

Things are looking shaky, but not entirely bleak, for the media and advertising industries at present. Following a recent period of slight recovery, the deteriorating outlook for consumer spending levels may begin to negatively impact on advertising spend, forcing growth down once again. As consumer confidence has begun to slip, particularly in the US, there… Continue reading Insight Analysis: Media Healthcheck – October 2002

Cinema Cinema has been the only medium to escape the effects of the advertising downturn and box office takings, admissions and revenues have been on the up for a number of years. The latest media forecasts from OMD UK (see OMD Sees Advertising And Media Turnaround In 2003) show no signs of a slowdown in… Continue reading UK Cinema, Outdoor & Online Forecasts From OMD UK

Over 600 million people worldwide now have access to the web according to statistics from Nua Internet Surveys. The Irish-based company calculates that 605.6 million people had internet access by the end of September, up from 580.7 million at the end of May (see One-Tenth of The Global Population Now Online, Says Report). Europe, with… Continue reading Global Internet Population Tops 600 Million

Guardian Media Group (GMG) has continued its radio expansion with the acquisition of Clear Channel UK’s radio sales division for an undisclosed sum. The future of the advertising house had been in doubt following GMG’s £44.5 million purchase of Jazz FM, which accounted for about 52% of Clear Channel’s advertising sales revenues (see Jazz FM… Continue reading GMG Set To Consolidate Radio Ad Sales

UK cable company, Telewest Communications, today said that it is making progress in its plans for the full financial restructure that will rid the group of £3.5 billion of its £5.3 billion debt. However, the company has run into a glitch with one of its creditors, French banking institution Credit Agricole, which is attempting to… Continue reading Telewest Defers Payments Ahead Of Restructure

After a recent period of slight recovery, the deteriorating outlook for consumer spending levels may begin to negatively impact on advertising spend, forcing growth down once again. Advertising is very closely tied to consumer confidence and corporate profitability. In 2001 there was a sudden dip in corporate profitability and it was primarily this which caused… Continue reading Insight Analysis: Will A Consumer Spending Dip Bring Down Ad Revenues?

Despite dwindling consumer confidence and concerns about the wider commercial picture, the internet economy continues to grow and eMarketer is forecasting that online retail sales will approach $13 billion in the final quarter of 2002. A recent study from Forrester had claimed that ecommerce revenues were failing to reach anticipated levels (see US Online Sales… Continue reading Online Sales To Rise In The Fall, Says eMarketer

After a difficult period in 2001 when revenues slipped almost 10%, the television market has fared better this year and the sector will experience steady growth over the next five years, according to OMD UK. The agency noted that TV’s share of advertising expenditure increased throughout the 1990s as the medium was seen as the… Continue reading Television Advertising On The Up Despite ITV Troubles

Ad revenues at regional newspaper publishing group, Johnston Press, are performing strongly in ‘challenging market conditions’, with Q3/Q4 growth expected to be 1-2%, according to Merrill Lynch analysts. The broker is expecting a full year growth of about 2%. Johnston’s management is budgeting for a 2-3% growth next year, in line with analysts’ forecasts, but… Continue reading Johnston Press Revenues Resilient In Challenging Market