The Nielsen Company is reporting an operating income of $118 million for 2008, down considerably from $416 million in 2007. Revenues were $5 billion, up about 6% from the prior year. Nielsen attributes the profit decline, in part, to $726 million in goodwill impairment and deal-related costs. Roughly $120 million of that was attributed to restructuring charges associated with the termination of about 1,200 staffers in 2008, as well as $24 million in contractual termination costs and asset write-offs. Since December 2006, Nielsen has terminated approximately 6,100 employees as part of a company-wide restructuring effort. The company …

While product-placement deals are usually the work of TV networks and major brands, local TV stations are getting into the act. For instance, local stations that air Meredith's syndicated hour-long lifestyle program "Better" are now running customized videos that feature State Farm Insurance. Program syndicators "are a little bit more open" to adopting branded-entertainment ideas, compared to networks, "who have to deal with their own standards and practices," says Ed Gold, State Farm ad director. Three-to-five minute videos centered on child-care topics, such as baby-proofing the home, are integrated into Meredith's "Better" program. The videos are the …

More Americans are turning to satirical news shows to keep abreast of what is happening in the world. In a poll conducted last weekend, 24% of respondents agreed that TV shows like "The Colbert Report" and "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart are "taking the place of traditional news outlets." The survey, by Rasmussen Reports, also shows that people don't necessarily think this trend is a bad thing. Nearly 40% believe such programs make Americans "more informed" about current events, while only 21% think the shows make people "less informed." But even as these shows have become more …

Fox Broadcasting's move this season to offer the drama "Fringe" with limited commercial interruption is showing some success, with audiences showing better-than-average recall of the ads, according to a February survey by Magna Global. Previous studies done by Fox with research firms Innerscope and IAG seem to support Magna's data, but those were based on "Fringe's" pilot episode, which was heavily promoted. Magna Global selected a random sample out of 20,000 TiVo viewers. About 36% of those surveyed fast-forwarded past the ads. Some 10% of "Fringe" viewers correctly recalled at least one ad, which was nearly twice …

MTV Networks is launching a worldwide initiative to promote new music. First up: the band Green Day. On April 24 the band's video for the single, "Know Your Own Enemy," will be exclusively aired across all of MTV's 66 TV channels and 200 websites in 162 countries. The broadcaster hopes to leverage its international clout to lure other acts into signing similar pacts. "The global breadth of MTV's network makes us uniquely positioned to bring our audiences exclusive access to some of their favorite artists," says Bruce Gillmer, senior VP at MTVN International. "Only MTV can connect Green Day …

The cinema ad industry has a new client. The Federal Reserve plans to launch a commercial in movie theaters around the country to warn homeowners about foreclosure scams. Like many consumer product ads, the Fed's spot is designed to extend the reach of the content on the Federal Reserve Web site. The 30-second ad will run in 14 cities that are struggling with high-foreclosure housing markets and an outbreak of scam artists charging for information that is free from the government. The closing shot in the spot guides viewers to foreclosure tips and other housing-related information on the …

Nielsen Co. is adopting a new payment schedule for its suppliers around the world, a move that suggests the company might be facing a cash crunch. According to the new plan, suppliers can either wait 75 days for payments, or get their money in 15 days at a 3% discount. Nielsen previously paid many of its suppliers within 30 days. Nielsen is not the only company in the marketing and ad sector seeking to delay vendor payments. Omnicom recently told commercial TV producers they would have to wait until the client paid the agency before the agency paid the …

Telephone and cable companies have found a simple marketing weapon: local-television news, traffic alerts and weather. Verizon Communications plans to launch its own local TV channel in New York City this summer, as a response to the round-the-clock local news channels of rivals Cablevision and Time Warner Cable. A version of the local Verizon channel is already available in Maryland and Northern Virginia and it ranks in the top 20% by viewers among 350 channels. Verizon's FiOS1 channel features regular traffic and weather updates, as well as original news content shot by citizen journalists. Verizon is considering …

Shortsighted strategies, timid management and the recession have hit traditional celebrity media hard, according to a new DeSilva + Phillips report. Among celebrity media, magazines "have the most to lose in the years ahead" in terms of audience and revenues, says the report. The nine magazines covering the celebrity space is too many and consolidation is inevitable. People is perhaps the only brand to prove itself as a multiplatform leader-accounting for 24% of the category's print circulation, 28% of its ad pages and "an eyebrow-raising" 43% of its revenues. The fear for magazines is that when the economy eventually …

Cartoon Network is reaching beyond animation and getting into the live-action reality business. Executives announced a slate of six reality shows at Cartoon's upfront presentation this week. The cabler's programming lineup also includes seven new animated series and four original animated telepics. In addition to the reality shows, Cartoon has launched a partnership with the NBA with the program "My Dad's a Pro," starring Jalen House, son of Celtics player Eddie House. The NBA tie-in is likely a response to Disney XD's partnership with ESPN, designed to wrest 6-to-11-year-old boys from Cartoon, traditionally the most lucrative kid demographic …