NEW YORK (

TheStreet

) -- U.S. media revenue rebounded this year after recording its first declines in 2009 according to a report from

Advertising Age

, while Internet advertising pulled ahead of newspapers.

The Internet became the

second largest U.S. ad medium in 2010, beating newspapers for the first time

since

Ad Age

began collecting media company data in 1981.

According to

Ad Age's

analysis, total revenue from the nation's top media companies climbed 6.1% in the first half of 2010, after suffering a 3.8% decline in 2009.

Data from

Interpublic Group's

(IPG) - Get Report

MagnaGlobal, shows that television companies held onto the top spot as the largest ad medium.

>>2010 Pay-TV Stock Winners and Losers

In the third quarter of 2010, U.S. Internet advertising revenue was up 17% to an all-time high of $6.4 billion from $5.5 billion in the same period in 2009, according to data from Interactive Advertising Bureau and PwC US.

"The Internet has transformed consumers' lives and how they experience entertainment, information and brands," IAB president and CEO Randall Rothenberg said in November, when they released their report. "Marketers have embraced digital media because that's where they can engage with their consumers. This vibrant, innovative industry is creating jobs and contributing to the growth of the U.S. economy."

Researchers at ZenithOptimedia, a media company owned by

Publicis Groupe

, found strong digital spending data indicating an overall recovery in the ad market. The firm expects Internet marketing to drive an increase in global advertising spending and is predicting a 4.6% increase in spending in 2011 after seeing a "surprisingly strong" 4.9% gain in 2010.

The research firm expects Web spending to make up 18% of the market in 2013, up from 14% in 2010, driven by video and social media demands. Total online advertising revenue in the U.S. is on track to reach $117 billion by 2016.

By 2013, television is projected to account for 42% of the entire advertising market, up from 41% this year, and will remain the largest ad medium.

Last year, cable network companies were the biggest source of U.S. media revenue, led by

Walt Disney

(DIS) - Get Report

,

Time Warner

(TWX)

and

Viacom

(VIA) - Get Report

. These three companies combined generated over half of U.S. media revenue from cable networks in 2009, as newspaper companies saw a 21.5% drop in revenue.

Video and broadband providers, led by the two largest media companies,

Comcast

(CMCSA) - Get Report

and

DirecTV

(DTV)

, accounted for 39% of 2009 revenue. Without video's 4.3% increase in revenue, the total revenue would have dropped 8.3% in 2009.

This year, job data has shown signs of a market recovery after U.S. media employment fell 9.2% in 2009.

Ad Age's

analysis of U.S. labor statistics data shows that media employment climbed for two consecutive months in 2010 for the first time since 2006.

Internet media companies and broadcast TV have seen solid job gains over the past year while newspaper companies are seeing the lowest level of job cuts since the beginning of the recession.

--Written by Theresa McCabe in Boston.

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