• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, February 21, 2007

The Weather Channel is dropping "Storm Stories" later this year from its weeknight perch in the prime-time lead-in hour. Launched in January 2003, the documentary-style chronicle of survivors and rescuers battling extraordinary weather events will be replaced in the fourth quarter by two new shows stripped Monday-Friday in the 7 p.m. hour.

The fate of the show--the network's first long-form strip programming--is somewhat cloudy. Exact plans are to be drawn up, but call for it to run on weekends (it also airs Sundays at 7) and/or in the early-fringe time period.

"We recognize the show is several years old," said Liz Janneman, senior vice president-national ad sales at TWC. "We want to keep it, but give it a less prominent place and build up some newer shows."

"Storm Stories," originally launched in the 8 p.m. hour, was a trailblazer in TWC's efforts to diversify its programming. Its bread-and-butter continues to be a focus on news-you-can-use weather forecasts, reports and updates.

One of the shows replacing "Storm Stories" on weeknights also has a man-versus-nature element. Called "Epic Conditions," it aims to give viewers a "front-row seat" as extreme athletes ply their skills--mountain bikers, surfers, skiers and others--in harrowing circumstances.

A still-to-be-determined complementary show will follow at 7:30 p.m.

"Epic Conditions," which already has its own broadband channel on weather.com, will premiere with a limited run next month before returning in stripped fashion in the fall.

At 8 p.m., "Abrams & Bettes," which offers in-depth reports on top weather stories, will continue. So will "Evening Edition," which also looks to focus on weather issues and go beyond the forecast, from 9-11 p.m. An "Abrams & Bettes"--named for its meteorologist anchors--broadband channel is expected in April.

The tweaked schedule is part of TWC's presentation to advertisers as it enters the upfront season. Other key elements include emphasizing its multi-platform offerings, and a study conducted in conjunction with agency OMD showing that ad recall on TWC is stronger than other cable networks. And it is once again trumping fewer commercials per pod, with a maximum of three :30s per break.

The network's ratings have suffered recently, with this season's total-day average for the adult 25-to-54 demo down 22% through Feb. 12, and overall viewership down 18%. But the ratings may have spiked after snowstorms and flight delays gripped much of the country last week. Prior to that, the fall and early winter had been rather mild.

"Our ratings are connected to the weather," said Paul Iaffaldano, TWC's executive vice president-general manager.

Still, sales for the channel continue to increase--ad revenues were up 35% in 2006 to $244 million over the previous year, according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus.

But while TWC hopes that trend continues, it's emphasizing its multi-platform capabilities in the upfront as it looks to diversify revenue streams. Janneman said the number of deals done a year ago with a Web or mobile component joining an on-air buy was "not significant," but she projects the majority this spring will be.

Part of the reason is that each plan TWC offers buyers will include a multi-platform package, Janneman said. Another is that sales for TWC mobile has been brought in-house. Advertising options on the service now include a direct-response element that enables a user to immediately dial a toll-free number to pursue a displayed offer.

TWC's Iaffaldano said over one-third of TWC's user base seeks out content on more than one platform. TWC bills itself as a trusted, always-available source for the latest weather info.

"That reinforces how strongly people want to connect to our content," he said.

The study with OMD--based on more than 1,400 interviews and conducted by ASI Entertainment in December--sought to demonstrate that ads on TWC's platforms deliver a higher ROI than other outlets USA and HGTV (both selected by OMD). OMD also selected the brands--one insurer, a home retailer and a household product--used in the research.

For on-air spots, the research shows recall for ads--expressed a day later by subjects--on TWC averaged 19% versus 14% on USA and HGTV. The data also shows that recall was higher on TWC for all three brands, including a significant advantage--23% to 16%--for TWC over HGTV for the home retailer, a core category for HGTV.

TWC also provided results showing that ad recall for campaigns that ran simultaneously on-air and online was significantly higher on its cable/Web platforms than the other two networks. Recall for TWC ads stood at a 23% average, compared to 18% on USA's two platforms and 17% on HGTV.