Overall, advertising spending declined by 0.6 percent through the first three quarters of 2008 compared with the same period last year, but television did better than media in general, according to figures released last week from The Nielsen Company.
Cable TV set the pace for ad spending, climbing 8.4 percent over the same time period last year. Overall, television showed the most growth, representing four of the top five media categories. After a 6 percent dip through the first half of 2008, network TV — thanks to a boost from Olympics broadcasts — worked its way back up to a slight growth (0.9 percent) through the third quarter.
As for spot TV, stations in the top 100 DMAs experienced an increase of 0.7 percent for the period, while those in DMA 101 to 210 saw a decline of 0.2 percent, Nielsen reported.
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