Ad Spending Up As Economy Recovers

Advertising spending in the United States rose 2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2012 compared with the same period of 2011, according to a report to be released on Monday by the Kantar Media unit of WPP. That meant ad spending last year increased in all four quarters compared with the same periods in 2011; the other increases were 2.6 percent in the first quarter, 0.9 percent in the second quarter and 7.1 percent in the third quarter. For all of 2012, American ad spending rose 3 percent from 2011, Kantar Media reported; by comparison, ad spending in the United States in 2011 increased only 0.8 percent from 2010. Media that gained ad revenue last year, according to Kantar Media, included television, up 8 percent; outdoor, up 5 percent; and free-standing coupon inserts, up 5 percent. Media that lost ad revenue last year, Kantar Media reported, included newspapers, down 3 percent, including a 12 percent decline in ad spending in national newspapers; Internet display ads, down 3 percent; and magazines, down 2 percent.