New research indicates iPads offer marketers an opportunity to reach consumers simultaneously on both TV and the devices. A survey from Discovery Communications found 43% of iPad owners say they watch TV and go online concurrently "all" or "most" of the time (compared to 33% of non-owners). During its Shark Week last year, Discovery offered apps for the iPad and iPhone that allowed a viewer to interact with added content that was synched to the shows. (ABC has experimented with the sync-to-broadcast concept with several shows, including "Grey's Anatomy," where Lexus served as a sponsor and Nielsen technology powered the ...Read the whole story
New research from the Association of National Advertisers and Forrester shows 76% of marketers plan to keep their media budgets stable in 2012. About half (47%) of all budgets will go to TV. That's a 6% bump. Marketers are intrigued by the possibility of TV measurement systems based on set-top-box data. ...Read the whole story
TV remains the tent pole of the multiscreen environment, accounting for most of the viewing and ad dollars placed against video content, says ANA group Executive Vice President Bill Duggan. Other screens are essential but supplemental. ...Read the whole story
As Canoe Ventures looks to build network and advertiser interest in its request-for-information interactive TV product, new data shows about 20% of adults in a key demo took advantage of the offering in a test. That click-through rate via a remote control is an average for ads tested from five marketers: Honda, Fidelity, GlaxoSmithKline and State Farm. ...Read the whole story
TV brands and broadcasters that want more attention from consumers must get them to interact with the content as it airs. So Viggle, a company supporting mobile loyalty rewards programs, acquired tech-company Loyalize, which enables brands to engage with live TV audiences on mobile devices. ...Read the whole story
TV advertising dollars aren't enough when it comes to streaming games of the high-profile NCAA College Basketball Tournament online. For those not getting already getting Turner Broadcasting's array of cable networks, including TNT and TBS via cable, satellite, and telco providers, consumers will have to pay a $3.99 charge for viewing the games on laptops. ...Read the whole story
People are no longer just watching television programs. They are talking about them online, often on branded social-media campaigns from program sponsors. Still, defining "social TV" could almost seem a Hobson's choice between a redundancy and an oxymoron. ...Read the whole story
According to The NPD Group, video-on-demand revenues from pay-TV services hit $1.3 billion last year, with 15% of consumers age 13 or older having used the services at least once in the 12-month period between August 2010 and August 2011. ...Read the whole story
Mazda North American Operations is partnering with Universal Pictures for a promo centering on the 3D version of "Dr. Seuss' The Lorax." The automaker will associate with the film, which opens March 2, to tout its Skyactiv technology, which boosts fuel economy. ...Read the whole story
DirectTV grew healthy U.S. revenues -- but with a smaller number of new subscribers -- during the fourth quarter 2011. For the year, DirecTV ended with a 3% gain to 19.89 million U.S. subscribers. NFL Sunday Ticket sales helped boost subscriber costs. ...Read the whole story
Fox's"American Idol" has now landed back at its beginnings -- seeing ratings it hasn't seen since it started up 10 years ago. CBS' "Big Bang Theory" continues to best "Idol" in its common half hour -- 8 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. ...Read the whole story
Turner Sports, CBS Sports and the NCAA have unveiled a new tiered pricing and access model for this year's on-demand March Madness offering. Now dubbed NCAA March Madness Live, full access to all 2012 NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball Championship games from March 7 to the April 2 finals will cost $3.99 across Web, mobile and tablet screens. Free streaming will still be available on NCAA.com, CBSSports.com and SI.com for select games. ...Read the whole story
Network competitors might soon be partners, especially considering where Netflix and other digital TV/video services have gone. CBS doesn't believe Netflix is a competitor yet, because as President/CEO Les Moonves reminds us, Netflix still doesn't program 22 hours of "premium" evening programming a week. And Netflix? It believes it is in an "arms race" -- in which I'm guessing the more entertainment weapons you have, the better. HBO Go is in its sights as the most prominent entertainment enemy. ...More
Who could have imagined one week ago that CBS' telecast last Sunday of the 54th Annual Grammy Awards would be so historic and so highly rated for so sad and terrible a reason? The sudden death of Whitney Houston the night before resonated throughout, adding a genuine emotional undercurrent to an event that is often as distant and hollow as most Hollywood award shows. ...More
Throughout my professional life, I've had the privilege of riding hundreds of steep learning curves, getting thrown into the deep end in a huge variety of industries, disciplines, and markets. My relish of these moments is perhaps unusual; after all, not everyone likes being completely ignorant when tasked with something new. As such, I thought it might be useful to share what I've learned this past year in one particular area: television advertising and, particularly, media buying. ...More
By looking at the numbers, few NBA general managers thought that previously unknown Harvard graduate Jeremy Lin would average well over 25 points a game and lead his New York Knicks to six straight victories -- five of them without the team's two big marquee stars. What can TV programmers learn from this? While we all know the value of media research, scheduling research, and the testing of TV shows, success means more than just looking at numbers. ...More
Continuing on the commercial pod theme from the past weeks, let us now consider the common elements associated with pods. These constants help in the measurement of commercials within the pods and the measurement of full pods within a program or piece of content. ...More
If you've been feeling like you're seeing more ads when you watch 30 Rock online, that's because you are. Long-form online video - like TV shows - included about seven ads on average as of the end of 2011, and that's nearly double the ad load at the start of last year, according to a report releasing today from online video technology provider FreeWheel that analyzed more than 45 billion video views across sites such as ESPN, Discovery, AOL, VEVO and more. ...More