After laying out $9 billion in the network upfront, advertisers found the nets didn't
hold up their end -- even before the strike. Viewership was down. Audiences were below what advertisers had been guaranteed, even taking into account the expected drop due to the new C3 commercial
ratings.
So, unless the strike is over soon, the first quarter will not have many of the biggest program draws and audiences will likely fall even further. "Mid-January is when it really could start to hit the fan," one ad buyer says.
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