December 16, 2009

NEW YORK TIMES

Magazines Get Ready for Tablets

Magazine publishers are taking a mulligan.

After letting the Internet slip away from them and watching electronic readers like the Kindle from Amazon develop without their input, publishers are trying again with Apple iPhones and, especially, tablet computers.

Although publishers have not exactly been on the cutting edge of technology, two magazines - Esquire and GQ - have developed iPhone versions, while Wired and Sports Illustrated have made mockups of tablet versions of their print editions, months before any such tablets come to market. Publishers are using the opportunity to fix their business model, too. Read more...

WALL STREET JOURNAL

Forecasters Predict Ad Stabilization in 2010

The global advertising market will start to stabilize next year, following double-digits declines in 2009, but more-established markets such as the U.S. won't gain steam for some time, according to some of Madison Avenue's most closely watched forecasts.

Fallout from the global financial crisis will linger in the U.S. ad market in 2010, the forecasts say. Interpublic Group media agency Magna predicts that U.S. ad revenues-the revenue reaped by media companies in selling ad space and time-will grow just 0.2% to $162.7 billion and reach low-single-digit growth rates by 2012. Publicis Groupe's Zenith Optimedia, which tracks ad spending instead, projects that it will shrink 2.6% to $144 billion in the U.S next year. Read more...

ADAGE

In Holiday Retail Sales, the Best Ad Doesn't Always Win

New Survey Says Favorite TV Campaigns Have Limited Influence on Consumer Spending

Retailers shell out big bucks on holiday ads. And while consumers like them, that doesn't mean they're influenced by them. A new survey has found that half of consumers say they're not inspired to shop at the retailer whose holiday TV commercial or online promotion they liked best.

"It goes along with the old adage that I know half my marketing dollars are wasted, I just don't know what half," said Mike Gatti, executive director at the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association survey, which was conducted by Big Research. "[Consumers] probably still get a kick out of the commercials, but there are a lot of brand loyalties out there. ... [But it] does position [retailers] in the minds of people whether they shop there or not." Read more...

OTHER NEWS

ADWEEK: Consumers Defect From Iconic Brands

Loyalty deteriorates further in tough times

Consumers are defecting from iconic CPG brands as they try to save money by purchasing less-expensive store and private-label brands.

While this trend is not new, it has become more pervasive since the economic downturn started in December 2007, per eMarketer.

In fact, 59 percent of U.S. consumers reported having switched to store brand food and household products over the past six months, according to a May 2009 study by ICOM. Read more...

MARKETING CHARTS: Top 10 Wireless Predictions for 2010

As the mobile and wireless industry continues to evolve and expand in 2010, it will move toward the cloud, begin to go green and become more social - among other things, according to Juniper Research, which recently issued a list of its top-10 global industry predictions for 2010.

1. Mobile data traffic will put strain on 3G networks: Though 3G is less than 10 years old, 2010 could be the year when 3G networks begin to fall over under the burden of mobile data, due largely to some 33.8 million iPhones that have been sold since launch.

2. The mobile ecosystem will start to go green: A combination of continuing strong global subscriber growth and ever-increasing voice and data usage levels means that the mobile industry is under increasing pressure to develop strategies which both embrace environmental sustainability and substantially reduce average CO2 emissions both in the usage phase and across the life-cycle of a handset. Jupiter research envisions that 2010 will see a surge high-profile "green" handsets, featuring recycled plastic casings, energy saving modes and preloaded "ecotainment" apps which promote sustainable lifestyles. Additionally, more handsets will come equipped with solar-powered chargers; there will be greater promotion of handset recycling schemes. Read more...