New York, NY (April 7, 2004) Total magazine advertising reported rate card revenue for the month of March 2004 increased 6.7%, compared to March of last year, closing at $1,767,700,478, according to Publishers Information Bureau (PIB). Ad pages totaled 20,947.15, closing at -1.9% over March 2003. Year-to-date, rate card revenue closed at $4,089,306,220, an increase of 7%, with ad pages showing a 2.3% decline at 48,191.71 versus last year. “We’re seeing a shift in trends from the last couple of years. For example, the Financial, Insurance & Real Estate category, which has been greatly impacted by the struggling economy, registered an uptick in March and first quarter overall,” remarked Ellen Oppenheim, Executive Vice President/Chief Marketing Officer, Magazine Publishers of America. “Conversely, a different spending pattern appears to be emerging in 2004 for Automotive, given changes in the marketplace, which includes launches scheduled towards the latter part the year.” March 2004 vs. 2003 Seven of the 12 major advertising categories recorded both page and dollar gains in March. Financial, Insurance & Real Estate, Toiletries & Cosmetics and Retail were the top gainers. Only Drugs & Remedies declined in both dollars and pages. (Twelve categories are the most significant contributors to PIB revenue, comprising more than 85% of total advertising spending.) January – March 2004 vs. 2003 Year-to-date, six of the 12 major advertising categories experienced an increase in both pages and revenues over March 2003. Of note, Toiletries & Cosmetics was the top gainer during the first quarter of 2004, with Financial, Insurance & Real Estate; Public Transportation, Hotels & Resorts; Apparel & Accessories; Retail; and Food & Food Products registering a slight uptick in pages. Drugs & Remedies, Automotive and Technology recorded the largest page declines. Recommendations for changes to PIB operating rules have been approved. The changes, which stipulate that all PIB magazine revenue should be reported on a national page rate basis, as opposed to category rate basis, will allow for greater consistency in reporting. Additionally, all insert revenue will now be reported exclusive of production premiums. The new rules will be implemented in the second half of 2004. At that time, restated PIB revenue for first half 2004 and full year 2003 will be made available. “These changes reflect our firm commitment to provide – through PIB – magazine advertising data that is consistent and verifiable across all measured titles,” stated Wayne Eadie, PIB President and Senior Vice President/Research, MPA.