• Do Other Media Need Upfront Markets?
    Will there be more value, real and perceived, in the upfront this year? And not just for TV, but for the usual wannabe media suspects?
  • TV Somewhere: When Everywhere Doesn't Work (Like With Kids)
    For many years, broadcast viewer erosion due to cable grabbed big headlines. Now we lump all TV viewing together in one brew. That's because there's a new alternative in the land - those crazy digital video platforms looking to make hay. At first, we assumed digital video would foster continued viewer erosion for the old TV media. But those rumors were quickly quashed. TV executives said the reverse was true -- the Internet was helping viewership grow by functioning as a marketing tool, most recently through social media. Now we might be focusing on erosion again for one particular demographic: …
  • More Original Programs Provide Value -- But So Do Reruns
    National advertisers this time of year might be feeling the push and pull of networks promising fresher, original material. This provides the patina of more value for marketers -- though not always.
  • Traditional TV Companies Need Some Tangible Product Extensions
    Relax and recline; what we really need is for a TV company to go into the couch business. I'm thinking Kabletown has it right -- you know, the fictional cable company that owns NBCUniversal on "30 Rock."
  • Netflix Finds Promise In Video 'Seams'
    TV is a land of plenty these days - especially when consumers are in a rush to get to the next big thing. At least it would seem that way to Netflix.
  • CW's Loyal Viewers May Provide Clue To TV Stations' Future
    TV station execs continue to be angry that content and viewers are moving offline to digital sites. The CW, for example, now gets 25% of its viewers via cwtv.com -- and, in the future, should get more viewers from such sites as Netflix.
  • Some Subscription Program Prices Come Down -- But Trend Might Not Spread
    One of DirecTV's most profitable program packages -- its nearly decade-old "NFL Sunday Ticket" -- is getting a big price reduction. The NFL said it decided to "dramatically lower the price" by some 40% to $199.95, in order to give more fans access to all its games. At a time when prices for most program packages seem to be climbing, this sounds like good news.
  • With Lower Ratings Cause Studios To Ramp Up Show Marketing?
    The reports are unrelenting: Network shows continue to have lower ratings. Where will it all end? One sign could be studios taking a more active role in marketing their shows.
  • In Live TV, Advertisers Don't Mind Paying For Commercials That Run Until Completion
    While watching live TV, I use the mute button a good percentage of the time when commercials come on. (Sorry, marketers. You still don't know what makes me click.) But here's the silver lining: Your commercial runs until "completion" and sometimes I even see most of it. Hulu says it will now only charge advertisers for commercials -- around 96% of them -- that users run until "completion."
  • What If Usage Fees Applied To Traditional Show Watching?
    Comcast levies "data use" caps for some apps, but not for its Xfinity Xbox app. Reed Hastings, chief executive officer of Netflix, says this means Comcast "no longer [is] following net neutrality principles." Forget for a moment what Hastings sees as a big inequity: Comcast's imposition of a "data usage" cap on Netflix's app.Imagine if some of this thinking applied to the bigger traditional TV platform. What if you watched 15 shows a week, but your neighbor - who has a lot of time on his hands - logs in 40 shows?
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