With an estimated $62.5 million estimated take over the weekend, the Disney/Pixar animated film “Wall-E,” topped the charts, helping fuel a strong earnings year overall. According to The Hollywood Reporter, year-to-date earnings in 2008 have slightly eclipsed those from the same 2007 period: $4.62 billion vs. $4.6 billion.
The “WALL-E” debut was the fourth-biggest ever for Pixar, compared to a $70.5 million take for 2004’s “The Incredibles,” the $70.3 million opening for 2003’s “Finding Nemo” and a $62.6 million debut for 2001’s “Monsters, Inc.”
Additional updates and results at The Hollywood Reporter.
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The Los Angeles Times reported that advertisers and broadcasters are countering the ad-skipping tendencies of TiVo owners by boosting the number of paid product placements in shows. The story noted that, according to Nielsen, NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” featured the most product placements (3,977) during the first quarter of this year.
In a separate story, ABC News reported that the increasing use of product placement on TV and radio has caught the attention of the Federal Communications Commission. ABC’s story cited Nielsen data showing prime-time product placements on broadcast …
Bloomberg News reported that England’s smoking ban has contributed to a 6% drop in U.K. cigarette sales since it was enacted July 1, 2007, according to data released Monday by Nielsen.
British smokers bought 2.1 billion fewer cigarettes in the ten months through April 2008, Nielsen found, while sales of alcoholic beverages in bars declined by 8% during the same time period.
The findings suggest the smoking restrictions, which prohibit indoor smoking in public places, may have had a stronger effect on bar owners than tobacco companies. According to Nielsen’s survey, more …
Despite the growing popularity of viewing television content online, most adults (94%) who subscribe to cable or satellite television services prefer to watch television on traditional TV sets, according to new research conducted by The Nielsen Company for the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing (CTAM).
One-third of the adult broadband users (35%) surveyed for the Nielsen-CTAM study said they had watched at least one television program originally shown on TV via the Internet. Of those who sought out video content online, 87% watched television programs directly from a TV network …
BCS reports that American consumers are increasingly turning to social networks to share their woes over the continuing economic downturn, according to a recent Nielsen Online study. The study mapped the trends of worries voiced by U.S. citizens while they are chatting online.
The study also showed that rising fuel costs and the increasing price of food has led some of the U.S. population to go online to share their saving tips with others.
MarketWatch and The Los Angeles Times reported that NBC will become the first television network to make online streaming data available for specific programs.
The data, which will be released via Nielsen Online’s VideoCensus service, will allow advertisers to compare NBC.com’s audience numbers, show by show.
The move could help to make advertisers “more comfortable” with online video advertising, the LA Times reports.
Billboard reports that, as expected, Coldplay topped The Billboard 200 chart this week with their new release ”Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends.” The release sold an impressive 721,000 copies in the U.S in its first week, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Coldplay is the first rock band to have a 700,000-plus week since The Eagles’ “Long Road Out of Eden” sold 711,000 copies in its first week of release last November.
Spy comedy “Get Smart”, starring Steve Carell and Anne Hathaway, topped the box office charts over the weekend with $38.7 million, reports Nielsen EDI. “The Incredible Hulk”, which owned the top spot last week, came in second with $22.1 million and Kung Fu Panda finished third this week at $21.9 million. The full Top Ten of last weekend’s box office numbers is available at Nielsen’s website.
[read more]Is attentive customer service the hottest new marketing strategy?
In the first of a regular series of Ad Age columns, Nielsen Online Executive Vice President Pete Blackshaw examines how Apple uses in-store “concierges” to both greet and direct shoppers—thus blurring the line between marketing and service.
“Whether explicitly acknowledged or not, there’s an unmistakable ‘service is marketing’ mantra pervading every aspect of the Apple Store,” Blackshaw writes. “That’s something every brand, even those not as shiny as Apple’s, can learn from. The opportunity to solve problems, find solutions and even address ‘the …
Despite high food costs, sales of favorite cook-out foods are expected to soar in preparation for Americans’ July 4 celebrations, The Nielsen Company reported Wednesday.
U.S. consumers are expected to purchase more than 110 million pounds or $215 million worth of hot dogs and 25 million pounds or $117 million of fresh ground beef for the July 4 holiday, according to Nielsen. Meanwhile, carbonated beverage sales are expected to reach a whopping $1.5 billion – or more than 240 million cases, while at least 23 million cases of beer are expected …
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