• USA Today, Thursday, September 21, 2006 12:45 PM

NBC's new drama "Friday Night Lights" has an unusual cast of co-stars--Applebee's, Gatorade, AT&T, Toyota and the fantasy film "Eragon," which is due in theaters in December. All of these brands are being worked into scripts for the show as part of the growing trend toward product integration in television. Sitcoms and dramas are becoming new product showcases as a shrinking ad market, climbing production costs and ad-skipping technology lead networks to become more blatant about dropping product names in shows. Marketers spent $941 million on TV product placements last year--up 70 percent from 2004, says PQ Media, a Connecticut research firm. "We're seeing a ravenous appetite to explore this new territory," says ABC svp Dan Longest. "[But] it's not just about putting a brand in a program; there has to be meaningful relevance." Indeed, "CSI" star William Petersen demanded that a pair of tricked-out GMC Denalis be removed from a scene he was shooting last spring because he saw no dramatic value in their inclusion. They were promptly driven off--only to reappear in another episode in which Petersen didn't have a part.

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