• by Cory Treffiletti , Featured Contributor, April 5, 2006

Let me set that question in some context before I ask it in earnest.... As television evolves into an IP-based model and all programming becomes available in an on-demand format, with content being made available from multiple locations, what will happen to the brands we know and recognize in the current TV landscape, and what model will emerge in the not-so-distant future?

It's a question that's been asked in many meetings over the last few weeks, but let me take a stab at answering it here from my own point of view.

In the next generation of television, the content becomes the brand. We already see that shows like "Lost" and "Desperate Housewives" have emerged as cross-platform brands. "Lost" is the best example, when we consider that the show airs on network TV but is also available on iTunes, it's begun to spin out a series of books featuring additional characters from the plane crash that aren't featured in the show, and there's a magazine for those rabid fans of the show such as myself. If this is the case and shows become the primary brands, what happens to the brands of the primary and cable networks that we're used to seeing?

The cable networks have a leg up since they already create a sense of theme in the eyes of their viewers, and they have natural line extensions into other forms of media. The Food Network has DVDs and books and a strong Internet presence based on the concept of providing their viewers/readers/listeners with quality content around great food and wine. MTV's done an amazing job of extending its brand to the Web, into films, books and music by offering a specific target audience a plethora of popular culture entertainment (even if very little of it is still based on music). In a world where programming is available in many more formats than a traditional television channel, the cable brands have already begun to take hold, but what about CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox?

Fox is probably further along than its competitors, as it has certainly created a theme or a sense of continuity in how it present ideas--if not the actual programming itself. ABC, CBS and NBC are in a peculiar position because even though they own the top shows on television, they don't have a distinct brand. During some years you can count on CBS to deliver a slightly more mature audience, or vice versa with ABC, but shows like "Lost" and "My Name is Earl" break tradition with the kinds of shows these networks produced in the past, and therefore they don't offer a distinct brand to work from. Once again, if you examine cable you see HBO and Showtime creating distinct brands for themselves by creating certain types of quality programming, but the traditional networks don't do this successfully. So once again I ask, what happens to these traditional brands in the on-demand content environment?

My guess is that CBS, NBC and ABC are going to have to become mega-brands that offer exclusive deals with certain talent and stars, in much the same way the movie business used to be run by such monoliths as MGM, RKO and Paramount. In those days we saw stars sign to exclusive deals with the major studios, which would pump out movies featuring their best. They'd take the time to groom a star and invest in their future, often packaging some of their best together.

My guess is that in the absence of any distinct thematic content being developed by any of the big three, that we'll see them take to owning specific talent. It's the only way they can survive in the new age, and it provides them with star power that can be used cross-platform. If NBC owned the rights to Jerry Seinfeld for a period of 10 years, they could create vehicles for him to appear in and milk his star power to maximize profits. Otherwise he acts as a mercenary and can benefit anyone who has the highest dollar, providing no continuous value to NBC. I imagine that network programming will shift to be more reflective of how HBO and Showtime offer theirs, with schedules changing and specials being offered at certain times of the year.

I could be wrong, but I just don't see how else the old-school TV brands will survive in the new model. You can only own the content from so many angles, so why not work with what you know best. These networks know large-scale production. They know how to invest and make a star work, if given the time.

What do you think?