Boosting its research efforts to new levels -- possibly setting up a challenge to the existing TV currency system -- major media group Starcom Media Group Exchange has done a deal with media researcher Rentrak for its new National Upfront Package of set-top-box viewing data. The Rentrak data will represent one of the biggest sources of TV data from set-top boxes. Currently, there are 2 million homes and 5 million set-top boxes from AT&T's U-verse video programming service. With Rentrak's just-announced deal with Dish Network, the TV and media research company will now have viewing data coming from 15 million set-top boxes. "This is what makes it so exciting," says Tracey Scheppach, senior vice president of innovations director at SMGX. "15 million set-top boxes in the market are getting freed up." By comparison, she notes that Nielsen's current TV sample size is around 12,000. This is the second big media agency deal for Rentrak's National Upfront Package. A week ago, Rentrak struck a similar deal with Zenith Media. Its national upfront package is derived from its Rentrak's TV Essentials set-top product. "We wanted to go into ad agencies to sell current and historical information to get them started. As they talk with the networks, they have another currency to [address in ] those discussions," says Bill Livek, chief executive officer of Rentrak Corp. The deal is a four-month license -- in time for the upfront market. Scheppach says the deal includes valuable second-by-second viewing data going back to September 2008. But she stopped short of saying whether the data would be used to make specific deals. "This is to evaluate national and local audiences," she said. "This is about moving the conversation about where it needs to be." Starcom has made deals in the past with second-by-second data on a few non-rated cable networks, including HD channels. Starcom has done research set-top box deals with Kantar Media and the Charter cable system in Los Angeles, later adding DirecTV. It also has a set-top box data deal with TiVo and TRA, which incorporates shopper data. "We have been doing some deals in the past with set-top boxes. The difference here is that this is for multiple markets," says Scheppach. In addition, Starcom has made a separate deal with the NBC owned-and-operated station group in which Starcom will evaluate its stations audiences using Rentrak data. The Rentrak data doesn't offer demographic breakdowns -- key for many TV deals -- just impressions. But Livek says the data can be filtered with other syndicated research. Rentrak has set-top data deals with 40 television networks, as well as 14 television stations in six markets, including outlets from Lin Broadcasting, Sunshine, Media General and Sinclair Broadcast Group.
Hallmark Channels' efforts to gain a younger-skewing audience are aided by Martha Stewart programming as well as younger-targeted movies. "We looked to develop new product that was more contemporary stars, more romance, more holidays and less mysteries and Westerns that has dragged down our median age," says Ed Georger, executive vice president of advertising sales for Hallmark Channels. Georger was speaking just after Hallmark's upfront presentation on Tuesday in New York. Hallmark's centerpiece efforts have always included movies. The network said it would produce 24 new movies in 2011, which will include stars such as Jennifer Beals, Catherine Bell, Jacqueline Bisset, Frances Fisher, Brian Austin Green, Jesse Metcalfe, Jodi Lyn O'Keefe and Doris Roberts. Hallmark's audience goals aren't what other TV networks look for in younger demos. Its target is to lower its 55-plus audience to more of a 25-54 audience. Georger says a key ingredient is starting off a block of daytime shows from Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, which includes a library of some 140 shows from "The Martha Stewart Show" in syndication. Those will begin March 29. "From an ad sales point of view, having Martha Stewart is a game changer," he says. Hallmark's efforts, he says, are to broaden out daytime and early fringe with more similar lifestyle programming. For example, MSLO also has the rights to the Emeril Lagasse food brand name. In addition, it wants to create other programs from other producers. "She will be a big part of our network," says Georger. "But this isn't the Martha Stewart Channel." While Hallmark will manage, sell, and control the inventory in the Martha Stewart shows, Georger says the financial arrangement with MSLO is a partnership. This comes from tapping new advertisers Hallmark hasn't had before, in categories such as food, beauty, home products, pets and gardening. "We have already seen interest from appliances," says Georger. Concerning its Hallmark Movie Channel, now in 40 million homes, Georger says the channel will be Nielsen-rated coming this fall. This is probably a bit sooner (at a smaller subscriber level) than other cable channels might attempt, but demand is there. Georger says interest comes from Hallmark's long history of producing TV movies, as well as the family-friendly nature of its films. "Advertisers want to be part of this."
Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Radio has signed a deal with online ad network TargetSpot for online radio ad sales prior to the launch of its new online presence, HarpoRadio.com, which is set to debut on April 26. The deal gives TargetSpot access to streaming audio advertising inventory on HarpoRadio.com, which -- if Winfrey's previous media ventures are any indication -- will almost certainly attract a large online audience. The Harpo-TargetSpot deal has an interesting twist. As part of the agreement, Harpo is also giving TargetSpot access to a whole library of audio content from Winfrey's previous productions, which the online ad network will be able to repurpose for its ad clients. Specifically, TargetSpot will be able to incorporate clips of various Harpo regulars into streaming audio ad "vignettes," creating contextually tailored messages featuring Gayle King, Mehmet Oz, Laura Berman and Derrick Ashong. These offerings complement TargetSpot's online targeting capabilities, which include gender, age, ZIP code and programming content. Currently, TargetSpot's network reaches about 30 million unique visitors per month, according to figures from ComScore. That's before the addition of HarpoRadio.com, which has yet to debut. Among others, the TargetSpot network includes CBS Radio (one of TargetSpot's initial investors), MySpace Music, Slacker.com, AOL Radio, Yahoo and Live365. Most industry forecasts see big increases in online radio revenues over the next couple of years, thanks in large part to growing online audio ad networks like TargetSpot, which acquired Ronning Lipset Radio in October 2008. Elsewhere, Pandora, an online audio content service, is attempting to expand its reach into automobiles through partnerships with auto and radio manufacturers.
Skiff, the e-reader company created with an investment from Hearst, is expanding its reach through a partnership with Samsung, which has agreed to let Skiff distribute digital magazine and newspaper content to Samsung smartphones. The Samsung partnership is part of a larger strategy to distribute content from Skiff's publisher partners -- including Hearst but also the New York Times Co., Random House and Simon & Schuster -- to a variety of mobile devices, as well as laptops and PCs. Through its partnership with Samsung, users will be able to download the Skiff e-reader service to Samsung devices, including the new Galaxy S. As of December, Skiff LLC also had deals to incorporate a Skiff "chip" into Netbooks and e-readers from EnTourage Systems, Spring Design and Plastic Logic. High-profile publications with agreements to distribute digital content via Skiff include Esquire, Forbes, Popular Mechanics, The New York Times, and Financial Times. Hearst's funding of the Skiff startup is interesting, as it marks the first move by a major magazine publisher into the realm of consumer electronics. In addition to the digital e-reader software platform and a connected online storefront, Skiff is also producing hardware in the form of an e-reader device of the same name. The device, previewed in January at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, won praise for its large, thin "e-Paper" touchscreen (a quarter-inch thin, 11.5-inches on the diagonal) and high resolution. Separately, Hearst has collaborated with a number of other big magazine publishers -- including Conde Nast, Time Inc. and Meredith Corp. -- to create a common online storefront for print and digital magazines. The project is led by Time executive vice president John Squires, Hearst EVP/GM John Loughlin and Conde Nast president of Consumer Marketing Robert Sauerberg.
In a week where Nielsen acknowledged the importance of set-top-box (STB) data in an opening presentation at an annual research conference, some news about the potentially transformative data continued to flow. TRA, which is attempting to provide a single-source product, said MTV Networks has joined the list of clients using its STB service. The TRA system gathers second-by-second data from multiple MSOs and TiVo and then melds it with shopping-card data, looking to offer that elusive link between ad viewing and the cash register. A sample of 370,000 homes is used. Nielsen and Catalina Marketing have a joint venture also aimed at providing the advertiser-coveted single source. That offering does not use STB data, but looks to go a step further and link how TV and online usage impacts purchasing of consumer packaged-goods. Other TRA clients include CBS and Starcom MediaVest. Starcom said Wednesday it has a deal with Rentrak to use its STB data, which is not a single-source system. "A powerful tool ... to help marketers laser-target their consumers across our channels," stated MTV Networks research head Colleen Fahey Rush about TRA's product. TRA investors include WPP and Arbitron.
Univision won't broadcast this summer's World Cup in 3D like ESPN, but it's making HD a staple. All 64 tournament games on its networks will be live in the pristine format. Univision's Spanish-language coverage also will break ground with all games available to various cable, satellite and telco TV subscribers on VOD the morning after the live coverage. Some of those will also be in HD. Also for the first time, all Cup games will be streamed live on UnivisionFutbol.com -- for free. ESPN, which has the English-language rights, will also stream the games on the Web, but those are only available to broadband customers with the soon-to-be-branded ESPN3.com. The Univision game-casts will also be available to Verizon VCast mobile subscribers. All games will be on the flagship Univision network, except when two are played at the same time. Then, one will be shifted to TeleFutura. The majority of the approximately 15 million U.S. homes without access to ESPN will be able to watch the World Cup on the Univision networks, albeit in Spanish. Univision is using the event as a maypole for its networks throughout the tournament, with lengthy pre-game shows and its news and sports programs rife with information and discussion. "The most important sporting event for Hispanics bar-none," stated Univision head of news Alina Falcón.