Forrester analyst James McQuivey asserts in a blog post today that Google TVhas a chance to succeed at redefining the consumer television experience in a way in which Apple TV, Roku, Vudu, Boxee and various other combatants have not been able to do. "I have been amazed at how little people understand what's really going on here," he writes. "Google TV is a bigger deal than you think." McQuivey asserts that TV matters "in a way that nothing else does," driving $70 billion a year in advertising and a comparable amount in cable and …

The World Cup, which starts in South Africa today, will add as much as $1.5 billion to advertising spending this year as Coca-Cola Co. and Nike Inc. pay top prices for air time during the most-watched sporting event. Commercial air time during the month-long competition is commanding rates as much as 50 percent higher than typical prime time, said Vincent Letang, a senior analyst at researcher Screen Digest, based in London. World Cup spending is aiding a recovery of the global ad industry, which suffered plunging revenue during the financial crisis and is slowly recouping lost ground. The …

The Newspaper Association of America reports that print and online advertising has fallen by 35% since the first quarter of 2008. Circulation has dropped alarmingly too. Yet almost all newspapers have survived, albeit with occasional help from the bankruptcy courts. American newspaper companies like McClatchy stayed mostly profitable, even as revenues plunged. Some companies are now worth 10 times as much as in the spring of 2009, although they remain far from pre-recession heights. Steep cover-price rises have helped. But for the most part newspapers have cut their way out of crisis. In the past year McClatchy …

Syfy is looking to channel its fans passionate, vocal nature by establishing regular programming events, which blend live TV viewing, social media and video chats with network's talent. In the next few weeks, Syfy will roll out Syfy Connect, a Web platform that will aggregate fan commentary that gets posted during first-run episodes of Syfy's top series as they air. Commentary will conversations that take place on Syfy.com as well as on Facebook and Twitter. In addition, Syfy Connect will host video chats with cast members from its shows, during which fans will be able to directly ask …

While Americans often look askance at "big government" in the abstract, a new Harris Poll shows this doesn't prevent them from favoring stricter regulation of various phenomena -- including advertising claims. On the topic of "advertising claims," 65% favored "more strict" controls, vs. 6% favoring the "less strict" alternative. (Most of the rest said regulation of ad claims should be neither more strict nor less strict than it already is.) This tally put advertising roughly on a par with "air and water pollution," about which 6% favored less-strict and 68% favored more-strict regulation. Respondents were slightly more indulgent …

There will likely be some interesting boardroom conversations taking place at London-based agency holding company Aegis Group following Chairman John Napier's comments Thursday on the U.S. government's scrutiny of British petroleum giant, and environmental SNAFU artist BP's efforts to stop the oil leak and clean up the mess it's making of marine life surrounding U.S. shores. Napier, who until the recent promotion of Jerry Buhlmann, had also been Aegis' acting CEO, is also chairman of Britain's RSA Insurance Group, and acting in that capacity, has taken a very public stance criticizing the Obama Administration's comments about BP's efforts to date.In …

Walt Disney Co.'s ESPN network has convinced three major advertisers to produce expensive 3-D commercials for its new sports channel debuting Friday with the 2010 World Cup broadcast. It is the first major test of marketers' appetite for 3-D pitches. Procter & Gamble Co., Sony Corp. and Disney's Pixar will all experiment with spots on the new 3-D sports channel. ESPN has previously aired several 3-D telecasts, including the Masters Tournament. Ad executives say 3-D ads are costly and represent a time-consuming effort, since there are so few production firms skilled enough to create these types of spots. Prices …

New McCann Worldgroup CEO Nick Brien continues to shake up the executive ranks at the Interpublic Group unit, shifting COO Eric Keshin into the chief executive role at global Worldgroup production services unit EXP, according to an internal memo issued by Brien. Keshin, who has logged almost 30 years at McCann and was a close colleague of Brien's predecessor John Dooner, replaces Matt Ross, who is leaving EXP on July 1. Ross, the San Francisco-based former global chief on McCann's Microsoft account, was moved into the top EXP role last August. The move followed McCann's loss of much of …

The class of "Glee" will be hitting the books. Little Brown Books for Young Readers announced Wednesday that five authorized books based on the hit Fox series will be coming out, starting in August with the prequel novel, "The Beginning." The "Glee" releases will be a collaboration between Little Brown and the creative team behind the dramatic comedy about a high school glee club. Among the stars of "Glee" are Matthew Morrison as glee club director, Jane Lynch as cheerleading squad coach and Lea Michele as the singing standout. "The Beginning" will come out in time for the premiere …

U.S. regulators will either challenge or allow Comcast's proposed takeover of NBC Universal on the evidence, said U.S. Justice Department antitrust chief Christine Varney. Sen. Al Franken expressed concern about loss of independent programming and higher cable bills if the deal goes through. Varney said that it would be looked at thoroughly and a court would make any remedies binding, adding" We don't rely on promises." Comcast, the top U.S. cable provider, is seeking a controlling stake in General Electric Co's NBC Universal in a $30 billion joint venture being reviewed by the Justice Department and the Federal Communications …