Mediaedge:cia Forecast 15% Rise in Global Sponsorship

From AdWeek today:

"Mediaedge:cia, the WPP media agency, is issuing a report -- supported with data from sister sponsorship consultancy arm EIG -- that forecasts significant global growth in the sector, despite the economic downturn....At a time when ad budgets are shrinking, the report predicts that spending on sponsorships and related activity will climb worldwide by 15 percent this year to $44 billion and by a little more than 2 percent in North America to roughly $17 billion, per EIG research. "

"EIG" we presume refers to IEG. Here's the full article: MEC Forecasts Rise in Sponsorships