Newspaper title ad spend up for first time since 2007

Advertisers are spending more money buying ads from newspaper titles and their associated online operations, according to new figures from industry group NewsBrands Ireland.

The body, which represents 16 titles in Ireland including The Irish Times, says ad spend increased 4 per cent in the first half of the year. This is the first overall rise in spending since 2007.

A total of €80.9 million was spent on print and online advertising in NewsBrands Ireland titles in the first half of 2015. Spend by advertising agencies generated €48.1 million, an increase of 7 per cent on the previous year, while direct advertising spend, which includes property and recruitment advertising, remained relatively flat at €32.8 million.

Mediavest topped the organisation’s “agency league table”, increasing its spend by 43 per cent to €7.5 million. MEC Ireland recorded the highest percentage increase, with its spend of €1.9 million, up 87 per cent year-on-year.

NewsBrands Ireland chairman Vincent Crowley described the lift in the market as "satisfying" and attributed it to both reader engagement and the improving economic backdrop.