U.K. retailers increased adspend a total of 3 percent from the second to the third quarter of 2005, remaining the biggest ad spending sector, according to Thomson Intermedia's quarterly Advertising Barometer, reports Brand Republic (via MediaBuyerPlanner). Total adspend increased 1 percent in the second quarter and 5 percent in the third quarter compared with the year-ago quarters.

Adspend in print, TV, outdoor and online increased; direct mail, cinema, and radio adspend declined. "It looks as though some spend has shifted out of direct mail to fund the growth in internet spend," said Sarah Jane Thomson, chief executive of Thomson Intermedia.

Overall, the retail sector's share of adspend in the third quarter was 17 percent, with finance at 16 percent and automotive at 14 percent.