• by Wayne Friedman , June 28, 2010

WGN America, the widely distributed entertainment and sports cable and satellite network, is pushing advertisers to buy "contextually" relevant commercial time this fall, to kick off the premiere of the HBO series "Entourage."

The effort is called "Entourage in Context." Contextual advertising refers to matching ad messaging to the content delivered. WGN wants advertisers to program its messages -- especially those that buy the first position in a commercial break -- around the content of the show.

WGN says contextual advertising increases the recall and intent to purchase by consumers -- especially when commercials are related to specific scenes and story lines in a TV show.

"Entourage in Context enhances the value of our on-air real estate by allowing advertisers to run adjacent to content-relevant scenes that make sense for their individual brands," says Josh Richman, vice president of marketing for WGN. Richman says WGN America plans to expand the context advertising efforts to other programs next year.

This fall, in addition to "Entourage," WGN will add reruns of various shows, including "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "How I Met Your Mother," "The New Adventures of Old Christine," "Monk" and "The Unit." It already airs off-broadcast and cable network episodes of shows "Bones," "Scrubs,""South Park" and "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

WGN America, a Tribune-owned network, is available to an estimated 70 million U.S. subscribers.