• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, March 20, 2007

It's no surprise: powered by the Internet and to a lesser degree Spanish-language TV, U.S. ad spending increased 4.6% in 2006 versus the previous year, according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus. Internet spending soared 35%--widely outpacing all other media, including the 8.1% jumps in Spanish-language TV and the rising outdoor sector, which is tabbed a growth area with the advent of digital billboards and other advances.

With political advertising booming last year, spot-TV spending in the top 100 markets increased 9.1% versus 2005--a figure that should decline this year sans federal elections, then soar in 2008, buoyed by the presidential campaign.

Network TV increased 4.2%, more than doubling national cable's 1.8% jump, according to Monitor-Plus. The Nielsen numbers were in line--although slightly lower than--figures recently released by TNS Media Intelligence, which showed that 2006 overall ad spending increased 4.1% to $149.6 billion.

The Nielsen data might give media companies some reason to pause, based on the report that the top 10 advertisers only increased spending by 1% (to $17.9 billion) with limping General Motors posting a significant decline (down 16%), along with Johnson & Johnson (down 20.4%). J&J sat out the network TV upfront, and may have had trouble securing the same amount of real estate it had the year before.

The country's largest advertiser, Procter & Gamble, boosted spending a slight 1.1%.

Also in the auto sector, struggling Ford didn't skimp on ad dollars--with a 10.2% increase as it continued its turnaround efforts, while surging Toyota continued its foray with a 14.2% increase. Not surprisingly, AT&T, which re-branded itself as the new AT&T with a mammoth campaign, increased spending 44.4%--and competitor Verizon, which is aggressively promoting both its wireless offerings and new TV service, boosting spending 16.2%.

Even with J&J's decline, the pharmaceutical category overall saw a 14.9% increase (to $719 million), outpacing all others--with wireless services coming in second, up 10.5%. As would be expected with the auto category in flux, dealership dollars on the local level dropped 3.5%.

Surprisingly, product placement declined in exposure level, although perhaps not in expenditures, in prime time with 79,701 "occurrences"--Nielsen's phrase--in 2006, down significantly from 102,793 in 2005.

In terms of individual programs, reality shows led the pack with the most product insertions, with "American Idol" No. 1, followed by CBS' "The Amazing Race" and ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." "King of Queens" was the only scripted show in the top 10, at sixth.

With its prominent "American Idol" placement, Coca-Cola received the most exposure in shows last year, according to the Monitor-Plus tracking.