STATS: Top 100 US Media Revenues, 2007

Revenue Growth Slowest Since 2001

Media100'S Net U.S. Media Revenue Rises 4.6%, Nearing $300 Billion

By Bradley Johnson 

Published: September 29, 2008

LOS ANGELES (AdAge.com) -- The nation's top 100 media companies saw a 4.6% revenue boost in 2007, their slowest growth since the recession year of 2001. 

Media's tempered growth mirrors that of the economy: GDP last year recorded its most tepid growth (2%) since 2002 amid signs the economy was heading into recession. 

Media's biggest winner is no surprise: digital, with revenue up 10.8%. Cable-network growth was close behind, at 10.6%. The biggest loser: newspapers, down 6.8%. 

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The nation's 100 Leading Media Companies pulled in 2007 net U.S. media revenue of $299.1 billion, including money from advertising, subscriptions and fees. 

Time Warner still on top
Time Warner topped the list with net U.S. media revenue of $35.6 billion. Time Warner, which has held the No. 1 spot each year since 1995, collected 11.9% of Media 100 revenue -- nearly one of every eight dollars spent by advertisers and consumers on products and services from the top 100. 

Time Warner is likely to lose its position as the nation's largest media company. The company is preparing to spin off its biggest operating segment, Time Warner Cable, as a wholly separate company. Time Warner minus its cable systems had 2007 net U.S. media revenue of about $21 billion. That would make it the second-largest U.S. media firm, behind Comcast Corp. ($26.9 billion). 

Ad Age has published the 100 Leading Media Companies report since 1981. In that first report, the top 100 had U.S. media revenue of $29.5 billion, one-tenth the revenue of this year's Media 100. 

The Media 100 offers a bottom-up view of media by tallying revenue from an array of products and services. This includes traditional media, internet services, cable providers and movies. Revenue sources include advertising, subscriptions, sales of movie tickets and DVDs, and fees from TV production/licensing. ...

Report: Big Media Growth Slowest Since 2001. And That Was Last Year...

Peter Kafka | September 29, 2008 8:53 AM

Ad Age tallies up the 100 biggest media companies in the U.S. and concludes that their American revenue grew just 4.6% in 207 - the slowest rate since 2001.