Product Placements Decline by 15% in First Half, Nielsen Reports

Product Placements Decline by 15% in First Half, Nielsen Reports

NEW YORK, Sept. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- The Nielsen Company today reported that product placements for the first half of 2008 fell by almost 15% on primetime programming for the 11 measured networks on broadcast (ABC, CBS, CW, FOX, MNT, NBC) and cable television (A&E, Bravo, HGTV, MTV, and TLC). Broadcast television placements grew by almost 12%, while placements on cable television declined by 20%.

There were 204,919 brand occurrences on cable and broadcast networks between January and June of this year, according to Nielsen Product Placement Service. The most prevalent placement type on broadcast television was "foreground" which represented 30% of all product placements. On cable television, "wardrobe" placements were most common, accounting for 28% of all placements. "Foreground" placements, which accounted for 26% of all placements, were also prevalent in cable programs.

   Broadcast Television Product Placements    Top Broadcast Television Programs  

Prime-time product placement occurrences on broadcast network programs increased overall by almost 12% during the first and second quarters of 2008. The top 10 programs featured 21,427 occurrences between January and June of this year -- compared to 17,370 occurrences in the same time period in 2007.

The increase in the overall broadcast occurrences can primarily be attributed to changes in two programs' schedules. "Biggest Loser" (featuring 24 hour fitness placements), which normally airs each fall, aired its fifth season starting in January 2008. "Hell's Kitchen" (featuring Chef Revival placements) began its fourth season in June 2007 -- but began season five in April 2008, therefore airing more episodes during the first half of 2008.

During the first half of 2008, "American Idol," with 4,636 occurrences, was the top program, in terms of the number of placements. Four of the top 10 programs aired on NBC, while FOX and the CW aired another two each. All of the top 10 programs had more than 1,000 placements.

Product placements on "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" were especially well received by viewers, with four of the 10 most impactful placements of the first half of 2008 appearing on the show in May. However, Target's placements on the March 16, 2008 episode of "Oprah's Big Give" were the most successful overall, with almost 65% of the show's viewers recognizing and feeling positive toward Target's brand. Placements by the movie "Speed Racer" and Sears in the May 4 and May 11 episodes of "Extreme Makeover Home Edition" also received positive recognition from high percentages of viewers (63.6% and 63.2%, respectively).

                    Top 10 Programs for January - June 2008:                       Product Placement on Broadcast TV                                                               Total #   Program                                Network            Occurrences   American Idol                          FOX                   4,636   Biggest Loser                          NBC                   4,364   Deal or No Deal                        NBC                   2,122   Extreme Makeover Home Edition          ABC                   1,776   Apprentice                             NBC                   1,646   Hell's Kitchen                         FOX                   1,596   Big Brother 9                          CBS                   1,514   One Tree Hill                          CW                    1,308   America's Next Top Model               CW                    1,259   Last Comic Standing                    NBC                   1,206   Total: Top Ten                                              21,427    Source: Place*Views, Nielsen Product Placement Service   Coverage - prime time entertainment programs on ABC, CBS, CW, FOX, MNT,    NBC     Top Broadcast Television Brands  

The top 10 featured brands on prime-time broadcast network television increased by 38.5% in the first half this year, from 6,848 occurrences in the first half of 2007 to 9,485 between January and June of 2008. Coca-Cola was again the top brand, with 2,990 occurrences for this time period. 24-Hour Fitness Centers and Chef Revival cooking apparel rounded out the top three brands on broadcast television, with 1,765 and 1,308 occurrences, respectively.

                    Top 10 Brands for January - June 2008:                       Product Placement on Broadcast TV                                                                  Total #   Brand                                  Product Category      Occurrences   Coca-Cola                              Soft Drinks              2,990   24-Hour Fitness                        Fitness Centers/Clubs    1,765   Chef Revival                           Apparel                  1,308   AT&T                                   Wireless Telephone                                          Services                   701   Pussycat Dolls Lounge                  Nightclubs                 602   Nike                                   Sporting Footwear          575   Freemotion Fitness                     Exercise Equipment         409   Chicago Bears                          Football Team              383   Nike                                   Apparel                    378   Precor                                 Exercise Equipment         374   Total: Top Ten                                                  9,485    Source: Place*Views, Nielsen Product Placement Service   Coverage - prime time entertainment programs on ABC, CBS, CW, FOX, MNT,    NBC     Top Broadcast Television Product Categories  

Among the top five product categories on broadcast network television, Apparel ranked first, with 4,493 placements. Of these, Chef Revival apparel accounted for 1,308 occurrences. The Soft Drinks, Fitness Centers/Clubs, Football Team, and University categories also ranked among the top five.

   Cable Television Product Placements    Top Cable Television Programs  

The top 10 cable programs featuring product placements accounted for 85,480 occurrences in the first half of 2008-a decrease of 8% from 92,925 occurrences during the first and second quarters of 2007.

The decrease in cable occurrences stems from changes in program line-ups. Several shows that featured a significant number of product placements were aired less frequently, or were removed from Cable networks' primetime line-ups in the first half of 2008. Examples include TLC's "American Chopper" and "Miami Ink," MTV's "Run's House" and "Pimp My Ride," and A&E's "Driving Force" and "Dog The Bounty Hunter."

During the first half of 2008, "American Chopper" on TLC was again the top program, with 26,794 placements. Four of the programs in the Top 10 air on TLC, and another four air on MTV. Two BRAVO programs rounded out the top ten.

                    Top 10 Programs for January - June 2008:                         Product Placement on Cable TV                                                                Total #   Program                                  Network           Occurrences   American Chopper                         TLC                 26,794   Project Runway                           BRVO                10,316   Top Chef                                 BRVO                 9,316   Rob & Big                                MTV                  8,604   L.A. Ink                                 TLC                  5,849   Real World Road Rules Challenge          MTV                  5,504   Making the Band 4                        MTV                  5,330   America's Best Dance Crew                MTV                  4,899   Overhaulin                               TLC                  4,779   Jon & Kate Plus 8                        TLC                  4,089   Total: Top Ten                                               85,480    Source: Place*Views, Nielsen Product Placement Service   Coverage - prime time entertainment programs on A&E, Bravo, HGTV, MTV, and    TLC    

"American Chopper" featured the greatest number of product placements, but TLC's "Trading Spaces," which aired six of the top 10 best performing placements during the first half of this year, had the most successful product placements. Home Depot placements that aired on April 12 and April 5 episodes of "Trading Spaces" offered the highest impact levels -- almost 75% of viewers recognized and responded positively to those placements. Overall, nine Home Depot placements -- on "Trading Space" and HGTV's "Colorsplash" -- ranked among the 10 top performing product placements for the first half of 2008.

Top Cable Television Brands

The top 10 featured brands on prime-time cable network television in this year's first half accounted for 22,334 occurrences-a 19% decrease from 27,696 occurrences in 2007. Orange County Choppers apparel was the top brand, with 3,706 occurrences for this time period. Orange County Choppers motorcycles claimed second place, with 3,223 occurrences, and Under Armour apparel rounded out the top three with 3,068 occurrences.

                    Top 10 Brands for January - June 2008:                         Product Placement on Cable TV                                                                  Total #   Brand                                  Product Category      Occurrences   Orange County Choppers                 Apparel                  3,706   Orange County Choppers                 Motorcycles              3,223   Under Armour                           Apparel                  3,068   Elle                                   Magazine                 2,553   Big Black                              Apparel                  1,843   Metzeler                               Motorcycle                                          Parts-Access             1,794   Airgas                                 Industrial Supplier      1,772   Monster Energy                         Isotonic Drinks          1,562   New Era Cap                            Hats                     1,432   New York Yankees                       Baseball Team            1,381   Total: Top Ten                                                 22,334    Source: Place*Views, Nielsen Product Placement Service   Coverage - prime time entertainment programs on A&E, Bravo, HGTV, MTV,    and TLC     Top Cable Television Product Categories  

With 26,063 placements, Apparel was easily the number one product placement category on cable television during the first half of 2008. The top three apparel brands include: Orange County Choppers Apparel (3,706 occurrences), Under Armour Apparel (3,068 occurrences), and Big Black Apparel (1,843). Nike and Adidas Apparel also ranked among the top five apparel brands.

The chart below lists the top cable programs with the most Apparel placements. MTV dominates the list.

   Top Cable Programs for Apparel                                # of   Product Placements                         Network         Placements   American Chopper                           TLC               4,212   Real World Road Rules Challenge            MTV               3,321   Rob & Big                                  MTV               2,929   America's Best Dance Crew                  MTV               1,947   Making The Band 4                          MTV               1,372    Source: Place*Views, Nielsen Product Placement Service (Or The Nielsen    Company)   Coverage - prime time entertainment programs on A&E, Bravo, HGTV, MTV,    and TLC     About The Nielsen Company  

The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with leading market positions in marketing information (ACNielsen), media information (Nielsen Media Research), online intelligence (NetRatings and BuzzMetrics), mobile measurement (Nielsen Mobile), trade shows and business publications (Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek). The privately held company is active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and New York, USA. For more information, please visit, www.nielsen.com.

Source: The Nielsen Company

CONTACT: Anne Saini for The Nielsen Company, +1-646-654-8691

Web site: http://www.nielsen.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment