After the negative effects generated by the recession and economic crisis in the advertising sector, few people venture to predict what the nearest future will really bring. Even so, the opinions and forecasts of the experts and analysts are disparate and sometimes not optimistic.

As analyzed in an extensive and profound article published in the “The New York Times” some analysts like Matthieu Coppet of UBS think in a more optimistic way pointing to the possibility of experiencing a remarkable recovery from this deep recession in the advertising sector from next year.

In spite of this, this enthusiasm is far from the most generalized opinion. Gerhard Zeiler , CEO of the RTL Group, the largest commercial television network in Europe, reflects another point of view stating that “the good times will not come back soon”.

In this aspect, Zeiler himself was decisive in his statements; “I just do not think we see a rapid recovery in advertising revenue” and “I do not believe that the previous levels of advertising investment will be re-established as quickly and easily as many may think.”

As it is evident this diversity of opinions suggests that the forecasts on the recovery of the advertising sector no doubt sticks to an uncertain future. Many of the sector’s executives and analysts seem to agree that the worst is over, but there is a disagreement as to the time and strength necessary for their recovery.

Maurice Lévy , CEO of Publicis Groupe, maintains a more realistic position in his forecast by stating that it will not be a great recovery, but nevertheless, there are some interesting signs that could suggest that the sector could soon begin to recover gradually .

Some analysts argue that traditional media will never recover the volume of advertising investment lost during this recession as brands and advertisers have changed their strategies and tendencies towards other media and media such as the Internet or digital television.

Even so, if the advertising benefits generated by these means are not sufficient to solve the different business models, it could have a direct or indirect impact on the users and consumers themselves, since the publishers of newspapers and digital media would be forced to charge for Access to the resources and contents of their websites with the aim of generating new income.

In this regard, from the PricewaterhouseCoopers consultancy, it  is considered that the gap between advertising and other forms of income is still important, adding as data that advertising spending worldwide will remain below the levels of 2008 during the next four years.

Conversely, other analysts such as Matt Coppet of UBS are relatively optimistic about the prospects of recovery considering that some of these “gloom” or negative forecasts are exaggerated. While worldwide advertising spending has declined more sharply than expected, the outlook for next year has increased, also saying that spending will increase 3.9 percent, reaching 6.9 percent for the year. 2011

In his particular optimistic view, Coppet also highlighted the important structural change caused by the increase in technology and digital media. Current advertising spending as a percentage of the economy is already at minimum levels similar to those of the postwar period in the United States, suggesting in this way that there is a great margin for recovery and growth.

In the executive offices of the advertising agencies, prospects remain less optimistic. Martin Sorrell , CEO of the WPP Group, said last week, when the company reported a sharp drop in first-half revenue, have seen little evidence that improved confidence in the economy, which translates into higher spending for advertisers.

For  Adam Smith  Futures director of the GroupM, encompassed in the WPP network there are some exceptions to globalized pessimism. In the case of Germany, advertising spending has shown a slight upturn, and consumer products companies strategically increase their advertising investment in television media in countries such as China to take advantage of an economy that is at a moment’s notice. prosperous and favorable.