Cable, Web ad it up: broadcast nets boost product placement.

Spanish-language media, cable and the Net boosted ad spending by 5.7% in the first half of the year.

Newspapers rose a hair, while top 100 spot TV markets and net-work radio slumped, according to stats released Tuesday by Nielsen Media research. Firm said spending was livelier in the second quarter than the first.

With traditional commercial spots under attack by digital video recorders and the Internet, product placement showed significant growth, Nielsen said, with top 10 brands, led by Coca-Cola, appearing 11,455 times in primetime.

"The Contender" boasted the lion's share, with 7,521 "occurrences," as Nielsen calls them. "American Idol," "Amazing Race," "What I Like About You," "The Apprentice," "The Road to Stardom With Missy Elliott," "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," "King of Queens," "Fear Factor" and "America's Next Top Model" rounded out the top 10.

Top products placed also included Everlast Apparel, Gatorade, Toyota, Nike, Sierra Mist soda, Home Depot and Foot Locker.

Nielsen didn't provide year-earlier figures on product placement.

About 15,800 commercials aired 4.8 million times from January to June to generate $25 billion. Some 4.3 million of those airings were on cable, garnering $10.9 billion. Broadcasters took in $11.8 billion from 240,758 spots.

Overall, ad spending on Spanish-language television rose a hefty 15%; cable grew 13%; and the Internet jumped 12.6% year-on-year.

Local magazine spend rose 8.7%, and national climbed 7.9%; outdoor advertising grew 6.9%; and network television was up 4.9%.

Top 100 spot TV spending slipped 0.6%. But spending in smaller markets (Nos. 101-210) rose 3.5%.

Local and national newspaper advertising rose 1.8% and 1.1%, respectively. Network radio eased 0.8%.

Spending by the top 10 advertisers reached $9.5 billion, a 7.7% increase from last year.

General Motors overtook Procter & Gamble with a 14.2% increase and Ford drove up 10.5%. DaimlerChrysler cut spending by 7.8%.

H'wood cutting back

Hollywood cut back, as spending in the film industry eased by 3%.

Credit card services grew fastest by category with a 24.5% spike.

Nielsen noted that its online spending figures reflect CPM-based advertising only and exclude search-based advertising, campaigns and sponsorships. Newspaper data reflect display ads only. Nielsen said it omitted spot radio and syndicated television due to changes in tracking.