Advertising market momentum has remained uneven in different parts of the world and the entertainment industry, according to a slew of latest reports and forecasts published Tuesday. Carat, a unit of London-based media buying and marketing services firm Aegis Group, on Tuesday slightly increased its 2005 global advertising spending growth forecast from 5 percent to 5.2 percent, citing continued strength in Asia that is making up for weaker-than-thought trends in big European markets and an in-line performance in the U.S. The Asian advertising market continues to expand, and Carat predicts that at current growth rates, its size will eclipse that of Europe by 2008. The main driver on the Asian continent remains China, which entertainment companies have increasingly tried to target. Also on Tuesday, marketing data tracker TNS Media Intelligence said total U.S. ad expenditures for the first half of the year increased 4.5 percent year-over-year to $70.5 billion, exceeding the firm's 4.1 percent estimate on strength in cable TV and Internet advertising.
Try to imagine this scenario, that General Motors and Ford were given exclusive franchises to build America's interstate highway system, and also all the highways that connect local communities. Now imagine that, based upon a financial crisis, these troubled companies decided to convert all "their" local arteries into toll-roads -- they then use incremental toll fees to severely limit all travel to and from small businesses. Why? This handicapping process reduced the need to invest in building better new roads, or repairing the dilapidated ones. But, wouldn't that short-sighted decision have a detrimental impact on the overall national economy? It's a moot point -- pure fantasy -- you say. The U.S. political leadership would never knowingly risk the nation's social and economic future on the financial viability of a restrictive duopoly. Or, would they? The 21st century Global Networked Economy travels across essential broadband infrastructure. The forced intro...