NBC's Harbert Turns Upfront Stage Into Pulpit by David Goetzl

Where did all this boldness come from? Since Comcast put Ted Harbert in charge of NBC's broadcasting arm, he's seemed more interested in making sure the company's 10 local stations have more resources, including news helicopters. Yet at NBC's upfront presentation Monday, in what he referred to as a "sermon," he threw some punches at Dish Network and Nielsen. More notably, he launched what promises to be a very contentious public debate on Madison Avenue: whether to adopt C7 ratings. ...Read the whole story

  • NBC's Harbert Posits Ratings Change: Time to 'Consider' C7 by David Goetzl

    It won't happen this upfront, but Ted Harbert, the chairman of NBC Broadcasting, moved the ball down field on what could become a major battle on Madison Avenue: whether to shift to C7 ratings. Buyers are likely to resist since it would give a network higher ratings, which would raise ad prices. A ...Read the whole story

  • Dentsu: Despite Recovery, Japanese Ad Economy Contracts For Fourth Consecutive Year by Joe Mandese

    Despite the lingering effects of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, the Tokyo-based agency holding company managed to post a 3.3% gain in net sales for its fiscal year ended March 31. Dentsu, the parent company of agencies such as 360i and mcgarry bowen, said that while production continued to recover in Japan, the nation's economy remained uncertain due to compounding effects of the overseas economic slowdown. ...Read the whole story

  • Telemundo Ups Original Shows, Olympic Coverage by Steve McClellan

    Telemundo, the Comcast-owned Spanish-language media company, is boosting its original program production output by 40% to more than 800 hours for the 2012-13 season. It will add six new novellas as part of its programming mix, along with a record amount -- 170 hours -- of original Olympics-related content for the upcoming London games. The brand will also get repositioning this fall and a new logo and tagline in the future. ...Read the whole story

  • NBC Adds Another 'Voice,' Harbert Raises His On Dish Ad-Zapper by David Goetzl

    With a dearth of hit shows, NBC is taking a gamble by doubling up on "The Voice" next season. The singing competition has been a huge success, but adding a fall edition could dilute its impact. ...Read the whole story

  • Fox's 2012-'13 Season Beefs Up Comedy Block by Wayne Friedman

    Although Fox's overall ratings are down year-to-year, due to double-digit declines with "American Idol," it will win the season among key 18-49 viewers. That means the network has fewer holes to fill for the 2012-2013 season. Fox will start up a comedy block on Tuesdays. ...Read the whole story

  • Report: Broadcast Tops Cable, Viewers Embrace Key Nets by Wayne Friedman

    A new marketing survey shows the broadcast networks getting top scores over all cable networks. But top cable-rated networks performed well. These networks include ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC, as well as ESPN, Discovery, History, USA, Food Network and TNT --- brands that "American consumers can't do without," according Toronto-based Solutions Research Group. ...Read the whole story

  • Unilever, NBCU Mix 'Best Night' Campaign With TV, Online Video by Wayne Friedman

    Unilever will use some unusual input from consumers and NBCUniversal for a series of on-air and online advertising to start up a new campaign for Clear Scalp & Hair Therapy. The campaign "Best Night Ever" uses technology called Interlude to let users decide what happens next in the story of two characters, Chloe and Logan. ...Read the whole story

  • automotive BMW Touts Ultimate Service In Campaign by Karl Greenberg

    The campaign shows fictive customers in humorous ads where they do not believe a service advisor when told their maintenance is no cost, and mistakenly think they are being given special treatment. ...Read the whole story

  • transportation Mobile Mini Takes To TV by Aaron Baar

    Taking advantage of the planning many consumers may be putting into packing up a house or dorm room for new adventures, Mobile Mini touts its new long-distance moving and storage services for consumers in a television advertising campaign, a first for the brand. ...Read the whole story

Social TV Is Already Over, At Least For Some Players by Wayne Friedman

Have social media and television together become too much of a good thing? Seemingly everyone wants to get a foothold in social media, believing it is the next entertainment or marketing platform for all things television. Now comes warning of a collapse, or at least a consolidation of players. ...More

  • Online Video Inching Closer to TV Metrics & GRPs by Daisy Whitney

    We need standards. That's long been the rallying cry of online video. But another rallying cry has been - we're different from TV, so measure us differently. Ah, but you can't really have it all. Because it turns out that the legacy medium with its reach and frequency GRPs may win in the metrics battle for online video. The trend started with Tremor Video inking its Nielsen deal last fall to incorporate Nielsen's ratings GRPs into online video buys to give advertisers a metric for gross reach across screens. ...More

  • What Do We Mean By 'Television'? by Charlene Weisler

    We all think we know what television is. After all, we talk about it all the time. But my concept of what television currently is has been changing. Three recent events confirmed to me that television is evolving in a direction that requires a change in definition. ...More