Google could soon be the search engine of choice for Verizon Wireless phones — that is, if the two companies hammer out a partnership deal in the next month or so, The New York Times reported Friday.
The growing popularity of sophisticated mobile phones with simplified Web searching makes the prospective deal with Google especially attractive for Verizon Wireless, the Times noted.
“There is demand for Google search despite what the carriers put in front of them,” Roger Entner, a telecommunications analyst at Nielsen IAG, told the Times. “Consumers want brand names they know.”
The deal also makes …

Credit card use is growing by leaps and bounds in China, with the number of credit cards having doubled every year since 2003, China Daily reported Monday.
According to a recent Nielsen report, China’s young, urban generation is driving the growth.  Chinese consumers between the ages of 18 and 24 are the most active users of credit cards, a Nielsen survey of 11,500 Chinese consumers in 18 cities found.
With Chinese banks racing to issue credit cards, and overseas banks expected to join the fray, Chinese consumers will reap the rewards of …

Asian-Americans are at higher risk for being left without access to TV broadcasts when the analog-to-digital television transition occurs next February, Multichannel News reported Saturday.
As of this July, 13% of Asian immigrants in the U.S. owned television sets that were unequipped to receive digital TV broadcastin, according to Nielsen. 
In a separate story by the San Diego Union-Tribune on Monday, Anne Elliot, of Nielsen, noted that many unprepared households lack digital hardware for economic and cultural reasons. 
Elliot told the Union-Tribune that Black and Hispanic households and people under 35 are also under-prepared for …

During the second week of the Beijing Summer Olympics, American swimmer Michael Phelps continued to dominate online Olympics buzz, The New York Times reported Monday.
Between August 8 and 21, Phelps was the most-buzzed about Olympic athlete — with a 38% share of all blog posts about gold medal winners, according to Nielsen Online.
Jamaican runner Usain Bolt (5.04% share) and American gymnast Shawn Johnson (3.75% share) were the second and third most buzzed-about athletes, respectively, Nielsen reported.
Gymnast Nastia Liukin, basketball players Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, swimmers Jason Lezak and Alain …

According to Forbes, men and women use their mobile phones very differently.
Forbes’ story cited data from Nielsen Mobile showing that men are more likely to surf the mobile Web and watch mobile TV, while women take more photos, send more text and multimedia messages, and download more ringtones than men. 
The story also noted that women, who see their phones as extension of their personalities, are more likely to personalize their phones, while men treat their phones as a tool for keeping up with news and work email.
Learn more about mobile usage …

British consumers are curtailing spending on nights out, but alcohol purchases in supermarkets and convenience stores remained stable in 2008, Nielsen reported Monday.
Volume sales of take-home alcohol for the current year through May 2008 grew 3% year-over-year, while alcohol sales in pubs, clubs, and restaurants declined by 8% during the period, according to Nielsen.
Take-home sales of cider (+15.2% volume) and spirits (+4.5% volume) fared the best. Nielsen also found that take-home sales of more expensive wines and premium spirits brands fared better than less expensive alternatives.
During the same period, on-site …

NBC’s broadcast of the 2008 Beijing Olympics again claimed the top slot in Nielsen’s ranking of primetime telecasts for Thursday, August 21, 2008.
CBS’s “CSI” and “Flashpoint” rounded out the top three.

RANK
NAME
NETWORK
VIEWERS (P2+)

1
SUM OLYM THU PRIME 2(S)-08/21/2008
NBC
22,438,000

2
CSI
CBS
7,294,000

3
FLASHPOINT
CBS
7,208,000

4
BIG BROTHER 10-THU
CBS
6,167,000

5
AL DIABLO CON GUAPOS THU
UNI
4,813,000

6
FUEGO EN LA SANGRE THU
UNI
4,779,000

7
NFL ON FOX PRESEASON 3(S)-08/21/2008
FOX
4,606,000

8
GREY’S ANATOMY-THU 9PM
ABC
3,248,000

9
PRIVATE PRACTICE
ABC
3,178,000

10
UGLY BETTY
ABC
3,051,000

Source: The Nielsen Company (August 21, 2008)

Overall, NBC won the night with an average audience of just over 22.4 million viewers, while CBS took second place with almost 6.9 million average viewers. FOX and Univision claimed …

Rather than raising prices, some food manufacturers are simply reducing the size of their products, FoodNavigatorUSA reported earlier this week.  A 12-ounce bag of potato chips, for example, is now more likely to be just 10 ounces.
Such strategies may minimize sticker shock at the grocery store, but are proving unpopular with U.S. consumers, according to Nielsen.
A recent study conducted by Nielsen found that consumers prefer larger sizes at a lower price per serving — rather than downsizing.
Consumers offset higer food costs by buying a product less frequently or in smaller …

Over the next two years, Australians’ liquor preferences are expected to change dramatically – with a new “healthy for me, the planet, uncomplicated and authentic” drinks trend emerging, a Nielsen survey released Thursday found.
“Consumers are demanding more sparkling and Sauvignon Blanc wines, craft beers, and beverages claiming low carbon emissions,” Michael Walton, Executive Director Liquor Services, Pacific, Nielsen, noted. 
Nielsen’s survey also found that while Australian consumers are increasingly skeptical about traditional advertising, many are increasingly won over by word of mouth endorsements.
By 2010, retail sales in the Australian packaged liquor market are expected to increase …

Earlier this week, Palm officially announced its new Treo Pro smart phone, due out this fall in the U.S.
But this new offering isn’t expected to reverse Palm’s fall from dominance in the U.S. smartphone market, Wired reported Wednesday.  Instead, Wired noted, the company is pinning its hopes on its next smart phone, coming in 2009.
The story cited data from Nielsen Mobile, illustrating Palm’s steadily declining share of the U.S. smartphone market.