Commentary

Getting More Upfront Mania -- Even After Your Fill

The number of upfront presentations is getting so crowded that some networks want to make sure their message gets out -- even in reruns.

MTV, a day after its recent upfront, emailed journalists a video link for its entire presentation titled “In Case You Missed It. Upfront.”

MTV, never a shy brand, has been doing upfront presentations for several decades now. During that time, it has created its own unusual marketing machine. But with younger-skewing media platforms – like Facebook, Yahoo and YouTube -- looking to increase share, TV networks want to stay top of mind.

As Joe Mandese, editor-in-chief of MediaPost, reminded TV Watch: Tickets for upfront presentations in New York City, where insiders can get the scoop on stuff arriving for the new season. have traditionally been hard to get.

The networks do a lot more selling these days -- to advertisers, journalists, and consumers -- well before the season starts. TV teasing continues to be a big-time business. Think about the continued growth of Comic-Con -- a fan-centric entertainment event.

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This means we should all think a little more deeply about media-hungry consumers -- not only those who want to know general-interest stuff about shows but also perhaps about producer deals, viewership totals, and which show is winning over others.

Niche industry websites continue to draw more consumer users. You only have to consider the fact that many  TV news shows  and publications run Monday morning theatrical film box score results.

What about TV shows about the networks' industry presentations? Seems at least as entertaining in the midst of a lot of mediocre media content. I’d be upfront about that.

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