Spanish advertisers more pessimistic in Oct-survey

Spanish firms became more pessimistic this month about the country's already battered advertising market as the prospect of a full bailout for Spain looms on the horizon, a poll showed on Monday.

Advertisers said they would spend 15.1 percent less this year, a total of 4.5 billion euros ($5.82 billion), according to the October study by media consultancy Zenith, a bigger fall than the 8.9 percent decrease they predicted in June.

Next year, advertisers see the market shrinking another 10.2 percent.

"The return from the summer holidays did not bring about the expected boost," Zenith said in a statement on the survey. "The shrinking of spending in media advertising has worsened."

Spain, now in its second recession in three years, is widely perceived to be edging closer to asking for financial, potentially allowing the European Central Bank to begin buying its bonds.

The country's advertising market has collapsed along with a decade-long credit-fuelled housing boom, with advertising down 43 percent since 2007.

Newspaper advertising has been badly hit. Advertisers expected to spend 23.1 percent less on spots in free newspapers this year and 20.2 percent less on space in paid-for newspapers.

Television companies are also suffering. Mainstream non-pay TV channels will suffer a 17.3 percent slump to the year-end, said the Zenith poll.

Television company Mediaset Espana , part of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's Mediaset empire, said on Wednesday its nine-month net profit fell 60 percent after its advertising revenue dropped 13.5 percent.

(Reporting By Sarah Morris; Editing by Clare Kane and Hans-Juergen Peters)