Signs of the times. AdAge [5] highlights a new survey on future advertising spending in the next several years.

A key forecast:

"We expect [online ad spend]  to overtake radio advertising in 2008; to attain a double-digit share of global advertising in 2009; and to overtake magazine advertising in 2010, with 11.5% of total ad spend."

It also lists that globally internet ad spending would grow to $44.6 billion from approximately $36 billion -  which would increase it's share of the market from  8.1 to 9.4 percent.

This week the Associated Press moved a story on how an environmental group is using ringtones of endangered species to raise awareness of this extinction  issue among people with mobile phones. You know, wolves in the wild or blue whales. I was quoted in the story [12] as showing how this is just the tip of the iceberg of the ways that mobile media will be used in politics in the next couple years.

However, I elaborated on that concept this week in the public radio show Future Tense [13] that airs on about 100 stations.  I talked about how those little snippets of sounds can actually have an impact on how people think. Remember that it goes off every time the phone rings, and that all of the person’s social network of friends and family who are around them will also hear the sounds and spark a conversation. And all those little sparks can add up to start a fire...

You can listen to the 5 minute podcast here [14].