• by Wayne Friedman , David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, March 8, 2007

Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau chief Sean Cunningham used what could be termed a "velvet hammer" Wednesday, vis-à-vis the group pushing an eBay-enabled online system for buying and selling TV time. He took it to task, while making a plea for partnership.

Cunningham--who did not attend a presentation by the group at last week's AAAAs media conference--said cable sales executives who were there took offense at the portrayal of cable networks as an obstacle to launching the eBay Media Marketplace. Attendees also bristled at "eBay's characterization that this is ready," Cunningham said.

"We've never thought we were obstacles in this," he said. "From the beginning, when we were asked would we come along for a test of this and be willing to look at a demo, we said yes." But so far, no version has been made available to evaluate. "We're here at the starting line waiting for someone to give us the keys to the car."

The eBay point person on the project, Howard Rosenberg, said at the 4As meeting that networks would have a chance to evaluate the system this week. As of Tuesday night, Cunningham said, no demo had been made available. However, on Wednesday after Cunningham's remarks, eBay sent an invitation to the networks to start testing the system Wednesday.

Bill Cella of Draft FCB, a member of the group behind the eBay Media Marketplace, said: "We need each other to make this happen. They've been very good at hearing our story and waiting for the system to have a demo. They've been great; they are definitely not an obstacle."

The eBay system presumably would facilitate the sales process, but if no cable networks agree to sell spots online, it's DOA.

The CAB and its members can't give the project a yes or no until a demo is seen, Cunningham said. He added that they are interested in participating in a pilot of the system, where cable scatter time would be transacted, mostly because top clients want it. The group pushing the system is comprised of heavy spenders, from PHD chief Steve Grubbs and Carat's Ray Warren on the agency side to Home Depot and Microsoft on the marketer front.

"We have an obligation to be open-minded on this because these are our clients who want this to be tested. These are buying agencies that we have real strong relationships with," Cunningham said. "If they think it's something we should be interested in, then we think it's something we should be interested in--and we can't wait to get a look at it. Until then, I can't really comment on what it is and might or might not do."

The CAB wants "the collaboration to start," he said. Once a demo is available, he would collect feedback, questions and commentary from the networks and take it to the buying agencies, marketers and eBay for possible tinkering. "We can't wait to be collaborative," he said. "It's something we'd really like to do now--we just haven't had the ability to."

"I wouldn't have hung in there this long unless I thought this would happen," says Cella. "I'm confident it will. It's a matter of sales organizations and agencies getting comfortable with it."

"We are not pushing for it," said Mel Berning, executive vice president, ad sales for A&E Networks. "We are looking to get a copy of it. I've only seen a screen grab of it ... Let us know what stadium we are operating in." Berning and six other top sales executives--from ESPN, Discovery, Lifetime, Comcast, MTV Networks and Turner--held a meeting about the eBay system Tuesday night. All agreed to state publicly that they will listen to the group pushing the system and are eager to see a demo--and that they are not standing in the way of a launch.

That meeting apparently prompted Cunningham's comments Wednesday.

At the AAAAs in Las Vegas last week, PHD chief Grubbs hinted that network objections to trying out the system were misguided. "It's a test, guys," he said. "I can't understand the huge reluctance to just test this ... it's not the anti-Christ." Grubbs added that in his 30-year career, "I have never seen a topic that has been more of a lightning rod for controversy ...we've not done a good job explaining what this is all about."