The Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA), in conjunction with the Wireless Data Forum and NetRatings yesterday announced the formation of the Wireless Audience Measurement Council to develop a framework for the consideration of advertising on the wireless Internet. Advertising revenues have been a significant source of support for the provision of content on the wired Internet, and there has been much speculation about the potential efficacy of advertising on the wireless Internet, especially given the value drivers of personalization, timeliness and locality provided by wireless access. However, successful advertising on the wireless Internet poses a number of problems for advertisers, their agents, and for wireless customers. Multiple wireless network architectures, multiple wireless operating systems, multiple end-user devices, and even multiple service provider business models complicate rudimentary advertising decisions such as content format. On the consumer side, issues of security, privacy, spamming, and the threat of having to pay airtime charges for unrequested and unwanted advertising makes market development problematic. Working in conjunction with, BPA International, and Target Wireless, CTIA will convene the first meeting of the WAM Council at Wireless IT, the exposition and trade show it co-sponsors with the Wireless Data Forum, on October 18 at the Santa Clara Convention Center. Invited to participate will be CTIA and WDF member companies, along with other Internet and advertising companies and industry organizations, as well as academic and economic experts in the field. Among the first jobs of the WAM Council will be to define a set of metrics that will provide advertisers and their agents with a way of quantifying the wireless Internet experience.
"Real TV" shows are hot among online consumers, according to a recent survey by InsightExpress, an online market research service. Sixty-one percent of those polled are watching the new "reality" programs, such as "Survivor" and "The Real World" -- prompting almost every other major network to launch "real TV" pilot this fall. Of these shows, CBS' new hit "Survivor" has surpassed the long-running pioneer of this genre, MTV's "The Real World". Thirty-eight percent of those surveyed pick "Survivor" as their favorite program, while only 32 percent chose "The Real World". Surprisingly, only 5% of respondents chose "Big Brother" as their favorite "real TV" program -- lending credence to the recent speculation that "Big Brother's" streaming media site is more popular among the online audience than the actual CBS television program (neither "Survivor" nor "The Real World" is currently available for real-time viewing online). And which "Survivor" will leave the island with the $1 million? According to InsightExpress, the favorite castaways are as follow: Richard (19%), Rudy (17%), and Jenna (14%). "With about 25 million viewers watching "Survivor" last week, these "real TV" shows have clearly become a cultural phenomenon," said Charles Hamlin, President and COO of InsightExpress. "While they may never replace the standard sit-coms and dramas based entirely on fantasy, viewers clearly find these non-scripted, real-life situations both intriguing and entertaining." Surprisingly, the shows' popularity may not depend entirely upon the depiction of "real life" situations. Over half of the respondents (55%) say they believe at least some of these shows follow some sort of script. Scripted or not, if given the opportunity, slightly more than half the respondents (57%) would opt out of having their lives broadcast on national television.
According to Nielsen Media Research, in total household rankings, ABC captured a 6.8 rating and a 12 share in the 44nd week of the TV season ended Sunday. The rating number represents the percentage of the nation's total of 99.4 million households tuned in to a certain network. Share represents the percentage of TV sets in use. CBS was a close second in the total household ranking with a 6.3 rating/12 share. NBC came in third with a 5.8 rating/11 share and Fox was fourth with a 4.2 rating/8 share. In the 18-49 demographic, which is highly desired by advertisers, ABC was the winner with a 3.6 rating (11 share), followed by NBC at 3.2 (10 share), CBS with 3.0 (10 share) and Fox with 2.8 (9 share). The WB network reached a 1.6 rating/3 share in total household rankings, and its rating among adults 18-49 was a 1.0. In total household rankings, UPN had a 2.1 rating/4 share last week. Its rating among adults 18-49 was 1.3. PAX TV had a total household rating of 0.8 and a 2 share. Among adults 18-49, it had a 0.3 rating. UPN is a network owned by Viacom Inc. The WB network is owned by Time Warner Inc., and PAX TV is run by Paxson Communications Corp. The following is a breakdown by average viewership numbers of the prime time network rankings for week 44 (July 17-July 23): Average prime-time viewers (in millions) 1. ABC 10.00 2. CBS 8.89 3. NBC 8.11 4. Fox 6.19 5. UPN 3.29 Average number of adults, age 18-49 (in millions) 1. ABC 4.45 2. NBC 4.04 3. CBS 3.73 4. Fox 3.44 5. UPN 1.64