Indiantelevision.com Team

(15 January 2008 12:00 pm)

MUMBAI: Lintas Media Group has released its annual Lintas Media Guide 2008, a comprehensive analysis of media spends and buys in the year 2007.

Lintas Media Group director (media services) Lynn De Souza said, "There are some surprises in store - ad spends have grown by a mere 3.5 per cent in 2007 over 2006 reaching a figure of Rs 173.56 billion, largely due to a fall of 1 per cent in TV expenditure, with large advertisers moving into more cost effective channels, slots and durations.

"While print continued to hold major share with 50 per cent of the total media spends with Rs 85.91 billion, Internet, as a means of advertising saw an increase in the ad spends of 43 per cent compared to last year reaching to Rs 2.15 billion. Radio, cinema and outdoors, on the other hand, capitalised on innovations and saw an increase of 28 per cent, 16 per cent and 17 per cent, respectively, reaching to the figures of Rs 5.29 billion, Rs 1.94 billion and Rs 10.62 billion, respectively. However, TV ad revenues showed a decline of 0.8 per cent reaching to a figure of Rs 67.66 billion as a result of competitive pricing offered by GECs to retain their market share."

Television: With the number of channels likely to touch as many as 500 in the next two years, the distribution of these channels is rapidly changing. By 2015, India is expected to be the largest pay-TV market surpassing the current leader Japan.

Print: Estimates reveal that the reach of print media in India has increased to 316 million people. Print media is also the favourite segment for global investors with maximum foreign investment in this segment. 2007 saw launches of many niche magazines like the Vogue, Economist and others. The print media industry still has the potential to grow as 236 million literate people in India are still not tapped by any publication.

Radio: 2007 saw the launch of several new radio channels especially in tier II and III towns. Of the total ad spends in India, radio is estimated to have a share of 3 per cent in 2007. This share is expected to rise to 5 per cent during 2008-09. As per FICCI-Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) report, the opening of new radio channels has provided a boost to creative content. The demand can be estimated to as much as 1.5 million hours of content annually for around 300 channels.

Out of Home (OOH): According to PwC, the OOH industry is expected to rise from Rs 10 billion in the present year to Rs 21.50 billion in 2010 with a growth rate of 17 per cent. Investments in this medium are still made through gut feeling and sheer bullishness. To counter this, a panel has been formed by Media Research Users Council (MRUC) to measure the efficiencies of outdoor advertising. Although this study will initially be restricted to Chennai and Ahmedabad, it is likely to expand to more cities by next year.

Internet: This medium has grown by leaps and bounds amongst the emerging media category. In addition to the increasing number of PC households, factors such as awareness of the Internet as a tool for empowerment have led to this expansion. Moreover, several one-time non-communication applications like exam results and e-ticketing have encouraged the less affluent to be on the Internet. Initiatives like National e-governance Plan (NeGP) should increase the usage amongst lower SECs in the next two years. In terms of advertising, the revenues have grown by 43 per cent.