• Mediaweek, Friday, June 8, 2007 11:15 AM

Spike TV is rolling out a pair of branded entertainment interstitials aimed at keeping viewers with the channel during programming breaks. The move comes as commercial ratings start to play a big role in TV ad buying and selling.

Two 30-second "Spike Men of Action" clips make fun of action movies. One is sponsored by Dairy Queen and the other by Lamisil. Niels Schuurmans, Spike's senior vice president and creative director says the pair are meant to discourage channel surfing, a top sales strategy for MTV Networks. Plus, they also generate more money while building the Spike brand.

"Commercial ratings are coming," he says. "One of our goals was to find ways to integrate our partners more deeply. This makes the whole channel feel more cohesive."

Read the whole story at Mediaweek »