Imagine five years out. It won't hurt, we promise.

Even the worst-case forecasts have our economic malaise nearing an end by then, a dreaded lost decade coming to a blessed conclusion and a true recovery taking shape with low unemployment and revitalized consumers.

Once again the ad business will be growing. But a new media and marketing order will be taking hold. In measured-media terms, in 2016, the furthest year forecast by eMarketer, TV will still own the biggest piece of the marketing pie (36%), but just barely. Online advertising, at 31%, is sure to be hot on its heels. Further behind but growing fast will be mobile, whose share will have jumped from about 1% today to 5% as marketers chase a wholly mobile consumer reveling in constantly improving gadgets and services (see chart below).