Summit Entertainment’s vampire film “Twilight” feasted on competitors this weekend, taking in an estimated $70.6 million to leave all competitors far behind, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“Quantum of Solace,” the latest James Bond film from Sony and MGM, came in second over the weekend with $27.4 million, shaping a 10-day cumulative take of $109.5 million.
Across the industry, the overall weekend take of $169 million marked a 4% overall improvement over the same time frame last year, according to Nielsen EDI. That makes eight of the last nine weekends that overall industry takes have beaten year-over-year …

Black Friday, the Friday following Thanksgiving is traditionally the busiest shopping day of the year. Many retailers use this time to offer “door-buster” deals – ridiculously low prices on key items that entice eager shoppers to line up outside hours before the store opens. Nielsen has prepared a Top 10 list of common mistakes made by retailers who are trying to play and win in the competitive world of Black Friday.
Mistake #1: Sticking to traditional categories
Who says supermarkets can’t sell video games or that electronics stores can’t sell …

TV, Internet, and mobile usage continues to grow in the U.S., according to a report released today by Nielsen.
As of Q3 2008, the average American watched approximately 142 hours of TV per month — five hours more than they watched in a typical month during the same period a year ago.
Americans who used the Internet were online 27 hours a month, and people who used a mobile phone spent 3 hours a month watching mobile video.
Men were more likely than women to watch via mobile phone, while women were more likely then …

The in-Cinema advertising market (ads before trailers, posters, etc.) has grown at a rate of 17% each year over the last three years. To answer many of the questions emerging on this topic, Nielsen PreView conducted a webinar “Cinema Advertising Demystified: Where It Is And Where It Might Go.” The webinar which features an analysis of the movie-going audience and how to improve the effectiveness of in-cinema advertising, is now available as a free download at Nielsen PreView. Additionally, another recent webinar The Advertiser Handbook: Top Ten Advertiser Insights is …

Given the immense popularity of texting in the U.S. and abroad, it’s not surprising that marketers have been ramping up their use of the medium to engage their customers. According to Nielsen, 16% of texters in the U.S. see some form of text-message advertising each month. Not surprisingly, teens are the most likely to engage with short-code marketing—35% see some form of text-message advertising in the course of a month. African-American and Hispanic mobile subscribers are also more likely than the average texter to engage with some form of text-message …

Compared to the rest of the globe, Latin America’s consumers place the highest importance on how environment standards and labor conditions impact products they purchase. In North America, consumers come in just below the global average when considering the importance of those factors according to a Nielsen report on Corporate Ethics And Fair Trading, done in partnership with Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute. In addition to Latin and North America, the report details consumer perceptions in the Asia/Pacific region, Europe, and emerging markets. “A global social conscience is one of …

Often overlooked by marketers in comparison to the tremendous growth of the Hispanic population, Asians comprise a rapidly growing segment of the U.S. population that is not only culturally diverse, but also well-educated, affluent, and media savvy. Asians are expected to continue to grow rapidly as a share of U.S. population. Although they will likely continue to be ranked the third race or ethnic group by size (behind Hispanics and African Americans), they will make up a significant share of population over the next few decades. The fusion of Asian …

By Emily Heitkamp, Nielsen Online
When details of the global financial crisis overtook the headlines in mid-September, consumers and brands began assessing their position in the economy and strategizing for the downturn. Retailers have reacted by announcing plans to offer deep discounts for the holidays, from high-end to mass-merchandise. Some have rolled out deals in advance of Black Friday. With reports of more and better deals from retailers and a bleak economic outlook for consumers, it would be natural to assume that consumers are hungry to take advantage of opportunities to …

Less than a month into watching the NBA season, Nielsen has spotted some noticeable trends, including several teams outscoring last year’s ratings in their local markets. While the San Antonio Spurs are still the highest-rated NBA team with a 6.8 Average Household Rating in their market, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Portland Trailblazers are close behind, thanks to large increases in viewership compared to this time period last season.
NBA Local Ratings Box Score

The New Orleans Hornets ratings are up 163% compared to a year ago, thanks in large part …

Kim Eugenio
Nielsen Online’s Pete Blackshaw gave a keynote speech on Friday, November 14th, at the WOMMA Summit in Las Vegas in which he stressed the importance of companies’ staying grounded in the “bread and butter,” the core values and core issues of their businesses, and not just focusing on the hottest CGM buzz words. These core objectives, especially customer service and product experience, play a critical role in motivating consumers to spread positive or negative word of mouth buzz.
One brand working hard to improve its customer service and reverse the …