GroupM: World ad spend rising faster than U.S. ad spend

Though the U.S. ad spend is expected to reach $168 billion in 2008, the global advertising outlook is a bit better according to a recent report from GroupM. The outlook indicates that globally, ads will see a 7% increase to reach more than $479 billion.

by Kristina Knight

The global ad spend rose by 6% in 2007.

Television and Internet advertising are expected to lead the growth spurt in the coming year. According to the report television will post a 50% increase in spending while online avenues will post a 30% increase in ad spending. Much of the increase spending will be from China.

China is expected to account for 21% of all the new spending while the U.S. is expected to account for 20%. "Russia and Brazil [will each account for] 6%," said Adam Smith, GroupM Futures Director. He expects India to account for 3% of the increased ad spend.

In the U.S. the Olympics and the 2008 Election are expected to lead in advertising dollars spent. The election could contribute as much as $2 billion to the total ad spend in 2008.

On the Internet paid search is expected to account for between 65% and 70% of the ad spend. In Sweden online ads are expected to outpace television ads for the first time in history.