New York, NY (July 10, 2003)— Total magazine advertising revenue for the month of June increased 8.5% compared to June of last year, closing at $1,577,776,450 according to Publishers Information Bureau (PIB). Ad pages for June totaled 18,833.7, down 3.2% from last year. Year-to-date, advertising revenue closed at $8,589,069,905, an increase of 9.9%, and ad pages were 109,181.6, up 1.8% from last year. June 2003 vs. 2002 Seven of the 12 major advertising categories experienced growth in ad revenue over June 2002, while four of 12 recorded ad page growth. Automotive, Apparel & Accessories, Home Furnishings & Supplies and Technology saw increases in both revenue and pages in June 2003. Financial, Insurance & Real Estate and Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts recorded the biggest declines in revenues and pages. (Twelve categories are the most significant contributors to PIB revenue, comprising more than 85% of total advertising spending.) January – June 2003 vs. 2002 Nine of the 12 major advertising categories sustained dollar gains for the year-to-date comparison, while five of 12 saw growth in ad pages. Ad page and revenue increases were seen in Apparel & Accessories, Automotive, Drugs & Remedies, Home Furnishings & Supplies and Toiletries & Cosmetics. Direct Response; Financial, Insurance & Real Estate; and, Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts experienced declines in both dollars and pages, year-to-date. "It's encouraging to see sustained revenue growth for several of the major categories in June," stated Ellen Oppenheim, Executive Vice President/Chief Marketing Officer, MPA. "Automotive, up for the past 12 months, remains the strongest category, with significant contributions by the big three American car manufacturers and several leading imports. Technology repeated last month's positive trend, thanks in part to increased spending by software, hardware and telecommunications companies. The softening in ad pages reflects the uncertain economic environment, as it is driven by economically sensitive categories such as Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts; Retail; and Financial, Insurance and Real Estate." Comment from Dr. Joe Webb: "The increase in ad page revenues as reported by the Publishers Information Bureau was countered by a decrease in actual ad pages, and the latter is far more important to our industry. Add to that the fact that corporations are stretching out the lives of print ads rather than constantly updating or replacing them, these latest data are quite a downer. Nonetheless, increasing ad spending will eventually turn that tide, but just not now." -- Premium Access Members can view more analysis in Dr. Joe Webb’s weekly column on Friday, appropriately called “Fridays with Dr. Joe”.