Fewer Branded Product Placements Appear On Broadcast Networks

by Wayne Friedman , October 4, 2017

Branded product placements continue to slowly decline on broadcast networks.

In the 2016-2017 TV season, there were 4% fewer in-program placements — on-screen brands or products airing within a program — at 4,346 versus the 2015-2016 TV season, when there were 4,538 placement, according to Nielsen.

This percentage was 8% lower than the 2013-2014, when there were 4,701 in-program placements.

Nielsen's results came from original, non-sports prime-time programming on ABC, CBS, CW and Fox, with viewers 18 years and older.

In addition, there were 6% fewer individual brands with on-screen placements — with 611 in the 2016-2017 TV season versus 648 a year ago. There were 559 brands with in-program branded placements in the 2014-2015 TV season, and 574 in the 2013-2014 TV season.

Nielsen also says there were an average of seven placements per brand during the last season — the same as the year before. The average was eight per brand in each of the 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 TV seasons.

In 2014, U.S. brand integrations on scripted broadcast and cable TV networks were worth $4 billion, according to PQ Media, which projected continued growth due to time-shifted TV viewing.

branded content, product placement, tv

5 comments about "Fewer Branded Product Placements Appear On Broadcast Networks ".

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Ed Papazian from Media Dynamics Inc, October 5, 2017 at 10:54 a.m.
As we will be reporting in the upcoming edition of "TV Dimensions 2018", the total amount spent by advertisers in this form of promotional activfity on TV has dropped for the second consecutive year. This is caused by the greed of those selling such "product placements", who keep asking for exhorbitant fees for these insertions coupled with the absence of hard, factual, evidence that they actually drive sales. There must be some positive value---that's agreed---but it's not easily quantified. So it's back to basics for many advertisers who saw product placement as a solution for increased TV commercial zapping rates.
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Frank Zazza from iVPP, October 5, 2017 at 11:30 a.m.

What Nielsen has not measured is the multi-million dollar brand integrations with Streaming, i.e Netflex , Hulu, Amazon and a slew more to come. Taking the magnitude of those deals into consideration more dollars are shifting to such. Contrary, these deals are measured and there is a waiting list for advertisers who have recognized success.

Leo Kivijarv from PQ Media, October 5, 2017 at 5:05 p.m.

I agree with Frank Zazza, as Nielsen doesn't cover the streaming services, as well as many cable networks who have product placements in their reality programs, such as Discovery's new series, Gas Monkey Garage Rehab. Furthermore, there are more scripted TV programs being produced in 2017 then ever before (455 in 2017 vs. 182 in 2009), many with product placements that help defray production costs, and with an eye to the digital viewing in which ad blockers are cutting out all other advertising. Additionally, most of the product placements done today are integrated into plots, rather than the brand cameos that dominated Nielsen's count when they first released this data earlier in the decade.

Accordingly, product placement revenues will continue to rise, not drop, in 2017 according to PQ Media, the first firm to size and segment the product placement industry in 2005. We'll be publishing our 7th edition of the Branded Entertainment Forecast Series in a few months (although top line data will be available next week in 5th edition of our Global Advertising & Marketing Forecast 2017).

Paula Lynn from Who Else Unlimited, October 5, 2017 at 5:57 p.m.

It's phony. When you are watching a fictional program and it gets itself hyped by a commercial product/service brand or vice versa, it becomes a not funny joke. Reality shows are mostly fictional as well so there's that. The product/service therefore becomes fictional to a degree. It is all one big mess from all angles. The best way this commercialization I ever saw done was on Psyche of all places. The main character stepped out of character while sitting in a Denny's booth to promote Denny's telling the audience what he was doing. It was funny and at least hones.

Ed Papazian from Media Dynamics Inc, October 5, 2017 at 6:32 p.m.

Leo, the point about streaming content not being included as well as the way product placements are executed in program contexts is well taken. In our case we are referring exclusively to broadcast network and basic cable paid placements---but even so we find a great deal of ambiguity about how to define product placement, what's paid for, what's obtained via the barter method, how these methods overlap, etc. In your report do you provide any info about some of these breakdowns? Just curious.