The total national advertising revenues grew a robust 23.4 percent to Rs 16,300 crore in 2006 compared with Rs 13,200 crore in 2005.

According to the ADEX India's Ad Industry Outlook 2006, print, logged a growth of 24 percent over last year, accounts for 48.2 percent of the total ad revenues amounting to Rs 7,856.60 crore.

Next comes television ad, which occupies 40.6 percent of the total advertising pie, rose 22 percent to Rs 6,617.80 crore over 2005. 

Radio recorded the steepest 58 percent rise � of course, over a smaller base. The segment has 3.1 percent share in the total ad revenues representing Rs 505.3 crore.

Cinema has 1 percent share in the pie accounting for Rs 163 crore cumulative ad spend, while the out-of-home category, which has 6.1 percent share in the total ad pie, has cornered Rs 994.3 crore in terms of ad revenues.

Internet too has inched up to take 1 percent share representing ad spending of Rs 163 crore. Clearly, there are lessons for marketers and media agencies from this.

While there has been a buzz around non-traditional media, the numbers show an increase. But this is still a small base.

Radio has shown a remarkable change largely through the opening up of new stations in the year.

According to Basab Dutta Chowdhury, COO, Madison Media, the fact that print has shown strong numbers is natural, as the category has seen not just new launches but also new editions coming up in an aggressive manner. 

"Also, print is more of a oligopoly market and thus, the inflation in the category has been sustained. TV, meanwhile, is a far more fragmented and represents a competitive market. This has forced the unit cost to come down," Chowdhury said. 

Further, according to Chowdhury, the ad revenues stagnated in 2001, and it was actually the growth in television which has led a resurgence since 2003, when the market inched up by over 9 percent and 2004 posted a double-digit growth of 13.7 percent.