April 15, 2006 When the US sneezes, the world catches cold, and in no area is the US more a leader than in media technology and trends. Which augers well for the internet economy with the release of the full 2005 year Nielsen Monitor-Plus, the advertising intelligence service of Nielsen Media Research.. Advertising spending for 2005 rose 4.2% over 2004. Advertising spending increased in many reported media, led by Internet (23.3% gain), National Spanish-Language TV (16.9%) and Cable TV 11%). Local (10.1%) and National Consumer Magazine advertising (6.7%) continued to rebound with healthy gains in 2005 and outdoor media put on a healthy 7.3% gain.

Several media however, showed little or no growth including Network TV, Local Newspapers, and Network Radio. Although Network TV showed positive growth through the first half of 2005, the absence of the Olympics in third quarter resulted in a year-to-year decline. The small increase in Spot TV in the top 100 markets can be attributed to advertising strength in the automotive, retail and insurance/real estate industries, and particularly stronger ad sales for Spanish Language stations.