A healthy rise in online and mobile advertising revenue in 2012 and 2013 will more than compensate for the steep losses facing the traditional publishing sector, predicts a new report by Media buying network GroupM.

The group, which calls itself "the world's number one media investment management operation," estimates that Britain's overall advertising market will grow sluggishly this year and next, with only moderate help from the London Olympic Games.

Digital high jump

The UK is recognized as a world leader in digital ad spending as a percent of total media, and the upward trend looks set to continue into 2013, according to GroupM futures director Adam Smith. “Digital spending growth already represents a quarter of the entire UK marketing economy, and it continues to grow,” he said on the GroupM website.

The report predicts that digital advertising spending will jump by 11 percent between this year and next, surpassing £5.3 billion ($8.3 billion) by the end of 2012, and reaching £6 billion ($9.4 billion) in 2013.