• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, March 10, 2005

Just as more product integration is creeping on airwaves these days, commercial-free TV shows are also getting a day in the sun. Is this an easy way out for networks or just good business? Perhaps both.

USA Network is the latest in this area, doing the documentary "Ring of Fire: The Emile Griffith Story" without commercial interruptions. Saab Cars USA is the presenting sponsor and will get a 70-second spot in the beginning of the show and another commercial at the end.

And USA is just the latest in a long line. Recently, E! aired a commercial-free premiere of "Dr. 90210," sponsored by supplement maker TwinLab.

Commercial-free programs tend to have subject matter that can be rough or not appealing to the masses. "Dr. 90210" is about real-life plastic surgeons. "Griffith" is about a 1960s boxer who killed an opponent while in the ring -- shows join a long line of sometimes tough-to-view content stemming from NBC's airing of "Schlinder's List" some years ago in which Ford Motor Co. signed on as its only presenting sponsor in a commercial-free airing.

In an age of increasingly commercial clutter, advertisers such as Saab and TwinLab have been doing their best to find ways to stand out. Product integration storylines and product placement activity are now all the rage. Commercial-free programs have been the forerunners.

For a network, this is a way to solve a problem. Just a handful or phone calls to make as opposed to selling up to 10 or 20 advertisers.

As broadcast and cable networks look to charm viewers with more real-life programming, more common man reality shows, more celebrity reality shows, edgier content will be employed to make a point - and to stand out. In many cases, not all advertisers will buy in. So a network has little choice but to seek out one sponsor who'll pay for the whole shebang.

But the question remains: Can cable networks make money on these shows? Probably not - and that's not the point. It's a lost leader, a sacrificial lamb, whose one purpose is marketing spin. It's the Miramax Films approach to marketing: Get great press reviews in order to draw in a select group of smart adult viewers -- who'll hopefully then stay and watch "Howard Stern" or "The Dead Zone."