Now we'll know exactly how many times Starbucks gets plugged during Weeds or Staples during The Office. Because somebody is going to start counting up all curious examples of fictional characters interacting with real brands! Sadly, the company doing the counting is audience metrics firm Nielsen, so expect egregious errors in any tallies over 10.

Neilsen has employed a small army — of stay-at-home moms? — of meticulous counters to do nothing but watch television all day long, noting down each time an American Idol judge wraps a hand around a Coca-Cola cup.

This, on the heels of the FCC saying it might follow Britain's lead in regulating product placement, much the way it already does the advertising industry.

It's unclear what the FCC's mandates might include — disclaimers? limitations on the number of plugs per minute? — but one thing is clear: Nielsen will be ready to help them figure out just how much money is changing hands.

[LAT]