SHANGHAI: Advertising spending on the mainland is expected to reach new highs with the run-up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, findings from a report by information and media company Nielsen showed.

The "Olympic effect" on the industry began to be felt this year - the third quarter alone saw advertising spending on the three major media of print, TV and radio total 115.7 billion yuan ($15.7 billion), up 14 percent from the same period last year.

Presenting figures from a report to be launched next month, Nielsen yesterday estimated that China's total advertising spending in the past three years increased up to an aggregate 22 percent.

The higher spending predicted for next year came with major corporations preparing to increase their exposure during the Games.

In the third quarter, the total advertising expenditure of the soft-drink giant amounted to 1.48 billion yuan, up 38 percent from the same period last year, Nielsen reported.

Richard Basil-Jones, managing director of New York-based Nielsen Media Research Asia Pacific, said: "The 2008 Olympics in Beijing will be a major boost to the development and adoption of new media by Chinese people."

"The use of IPTV, mobile telephones, outdoor and many other forms of new media will be undertaken and utilized to such levels that it will launch China into the forefront of new media development globally."

Bao Xiaoqun, managing director of development and research department at Shanghai Media Group, said that, compared with the previous Olympic Games, the viewing level in China during the 2008 event is expected to reach a historic high - a great opportunity for companies to gain market exposure.

"Chinese viewers' enthusiasm for the 2008 event is expected to be much greater than previous Games," said Bao. "The utilization of new media channels may also boost China's advertising spending in the years to come," he added.