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.

Website: http://www.nielsen.com/




Issuers of news releases and not PR Newswire are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.
Terms and conditions, including restrictions on redistribution, apply.



Copyright © 1996-2008 PR Newswire Association LLC. All Rights Reserved.
A
United Business Media company.