In 2012, advertisers invested more than 300 million euro into Romania’s advertising market, a 2 percent decrease when compared to 2011. Although television is the advertising channel which receives the most investment, the amounts invested in this medium have decreased from €337 million in 2008 to only €190 million in 2011. This decrease comes as a result of dwindling audience numbers, which averaged between 4 and 5 percent in 2011. Another reason for the contracting market is the global economic crisis, however contrary to this principle one can see that the online advertising market has experienced continuous growth over the past six years, expanding from €6 million in 2008 to €41 million in 2012, according to Media Fact Book (amounts estimated in 2012).

Alexandra Olteanu – a representative from one of the largest media advertising sharing agencies, Initiative Media – predicted that growth in the advertising market will come as a result of  increased consumption, “if confidence in economic recovery increases, consumption will recover as well,” Olteanu told the website paginademedia.ro. TV still remains the market leader, however shares decreased from 66 percent to 65 percent in 2011, with additional estimates for 2012 predicting further regression. The media channel most affected by advertising revenue is print. Compared to 2008, when advertising in print media reached €82 million, advertising budgets began to collapse in 2009, with investments totaling only €37 million. This decline has continued, meaning advertisers are now expected to allocate only €23 million to print advertising.

Specialists forecast a positive future for the advertising market, reporting that the decreases which began in 2008, are now leveling off. Steve Dallas, Managing Director of Initiative Media stated to Paginademedia “the average market downturn began to decrease last year, and in 2011 a much smaller decrease of about 3 percent is expected. Although more advertising space was sold, prices continued to decline in 2010.”

Article translated form the original Romanian “Internetul, locul 2 pe piața publicității, după televiziune” by the author