The money spent on advertising across all media during 2011 was almost $2.8 billion - that's up $42 million on 2010.
The money is made up of revenue from print, broadcast and digital media, as well as billboards, cinemas and mail drops.
For the first time, television tops the charts with advertisers spending $618 million with TV last year, up $11 million on 2010.
That's bumped newspapers into second place with revenue of $582 million, down $45 million.
President of the Newspaper Publisher's Association, Michael Muir, says the figures are discouraging, but do not spell the end of the printed medium.
"Newspapers are looking at other applications to connect with readers, but the strength is still with the printed product. In a lot of cases it is local news. It's connecting with readers," he says.
