TV Shows Bigger Ad Gains Than Other Media

By Jon Lafayette
( Broadcasting & Cable )
published

In a year of slow advertising spending growth, television
was among the strongest media segments, according to new figures from Kantar
Media.

TV advertising was up 5% in the fourth quarter, helped by
the NFL and NCAA football. For the full year, TV spending was up 8%.

Broadcast network TV was up 5% in the quarter and up 9% for
the year, thanks in part to the Summer Olympics on NBC.

Spot TV gained 12% in the fourth quarter because of election
campaign spending and finished the year 10% higher as auto makers and dealers
pumped money into local markets.

Spanish-language TV spending jumped 20% in the fourth
quarter, with higher sell-out levels at the broadcast networks. For the year,
Spanish-language TV was up 15%.

Cable TV spending in the fourth quarter was down 2% because
of reduced holiday ad spending and cutbacks from direct response marketers,
according to Kantar. For the year, ad spending on cable networks was up 3%.

Overall, ad spending was up 2% in the fourth
quarter and up 3% in 2012 to $140 billion, according to Kantar.

Jon Lafayette
Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.