Smartphones now account for 25% of the U.S. mobile market, up from 23% in the last quarter according to recent data from The Nielsen Company.

Americans spend nearly a quarter of their time online on social networking sites and blogs, up from 15.8 percent just a year ago (a 43 percent increase) according to new research released today from The Nielsen Company.

The use of over-the-counter medications is rising around the world, but the economic downturn is impacting usage. Manufacturers need to encourage responsible proactive usage and reinforce their brand equity to negate the threat of store brands and generics.

Growth in consumers’ use of social media is changing the media landscape across the world. In Asia Pacific it has become increasingly important for advertisers to understand what is driving this change and leverage its growing popularity.

With American consumer confidence seemingly stuck in neutral, the back to school season can be an insightful view into the state of consumer spending, as well as a precursor to what retailers can expect for the upcoming holiday season.

Each year a trillion dollars is spent on communicating to and persuading the human brain, yet few understand how the brain really works—what’s attractive to it, how it decides what it likes and doesn’t like, and how it chooses to buy or not buy…

Lower prices for food and other household items are great for consumers, but for retailers, they don’t always achieve the desired rise in sales as the competition is quick to follow.

While global consumer confidence continues the slow but steady climb upward from the lows experienced in the first quarter of 2009, consumer spending is following a similar trajectory.

Global consumer confidence edged up slightly as rising Asian markets were offset by Europe’s growing concerns of an escalating debt crisis according to the Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index.

The idea that Baby Boomers aren’t open to new products and technology is a 19th century myth, not a 21st century reality according to new data from The Nielsen Company.