• by Wayne Friedman , August 15, 2005

The delay by the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in selecting Ellen DeGeneres as Emmy host for this year's award show broadcast has had an effect on TV advertising sales.

CBS, which is airing the "57th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards" on September 18th, has done "okay" in selling Emmy inventory, but not great, according to media executives.

"Advertisers have been on the fence, waiting to see who the host was," said one media executive, who is close to the company. Now that DeGeneres has been selected, deals should start moving.

Media buyers say CBS is selling the award show for $500,000 to $550,000 for a thirty-second commercial spot--about the same as a year ago. A CBS spokesman would not comment about advertising sales activity for the Emmys.

Typically, ATAS signs its Emmy host months before the show--not weeks. Last year's host, Garry Shandling, was announced on July 7, 2004. When Shandling was last hired as Emmy host in 2000, the announcement was made in June.

ATAS usually makes its host deal around the same time as the TV advertising upfront market. Whichever network is airing the event that year (the big four networks all take turns), that network typically sells Emmy TV commercials with its bigger overall upfront TV advertising packages.

DeGeneres last hosted the awards show in 2001, two months after the Sept. 11 attacks. DeGeneres will host a live recap of the awards ceremony on her syndicated show "Ellen" on Sept. 19 the following morning, including behind-the-scenes footage from the broadcast. Many advertisers typically wait to know the host because some may not be appropriate for their brands--or may be too controversial.

"It is one typical question that buyers ask of awards shows," said Gary Carr, senior vp and director of national broadcast for TargetCast TCM. That's because the hosts provide most of the entertainment for the event, say media buyers.

Emmy advertisers of the past included GM's Buick Motor division, Capital One Financial, Nextel Communications, Sprint PCS, Visa International, and Burger King.

Another reason for some advertisers' reluctance this year is that last year's show sank to a Nielsen Media Research 9.4 rating/15 share--a 20% drop versus the year before, and the lowest numbers since 1990, when Fox pulled a 8.2 rating/14 share.

Another factor: The event's $500,000 price tag for a 9-rated show is pretty steep, say executives.

Working in CBS' favor is that the Emmy broadcast show is in the third quarter of the broadcast buying season--typically the tightest quarter because networks are looking to wrap up their yearly advertising commitments, which include supplying advertisers make-good inventory avails.

But the Emmys have a shot to make somewhat of a comeback this year because of new hit network shows from last season that are nominated for awards.

Said TargetCast's Carr: "This year it may do better because it'll have actors on from shows such as 'Desperate Housewives' and 'Lost'."