• by Paul Gough , July 15, 2003

Masterpiece Theatre doesn't yet have a sponsor beyond next year, but PBS has told producer WGBH Boston that it would fund the long-running drama series while they search for a replacement.

The search is necessary since ExxonMobil Corp. decided recently that it wouldn't continue to fund Masterpiece Theatre beyond 2004. The oil company, and its predecessor Mobil, has been Masterpiece Theatre's sole sponsor since it premiered in 1971. ExxonMobil provides between $7 million and $8 million annually to keep the series on the air.

And that's putting WGBH, the Boston public television station that produces the show and is responsible for finding a sponsor, in a bind. It's unlikely that another company would be willing or able to put up a similar amount to sponsor Masterpiece Theatre.

"We'd be delighted if we could find one sponsor but realistically we think it might take more than one funder," said Ellen Dockser, a spokeswoman for WGBH and Masterpiece Theatre. Lance Ozier, WGBH's vice president of national program marketing, said he expected that it would take two companies to sponsor the show. PBS has said that it would fund Masterpiece Theatre until a sponsor is found.

At this early stage in the search, WGBH is open to any number of companies who might sponsor or co-sponsor Masterpiece Theatre. WGBH is talking to financial services and pharmaceutical companies, among others, but Ozier isn't closing the door on any potential sponsor. "Who would have thought an oil company would have sponsored a drama series," he asked.

Ozier said a Masterpiece Theatre sponsor has the opportunity to be associated with a signature brand on PBS, a show that reaches about 5 million people nationwide. According to a Nielsen study, Masterpiece Theatre viewers are also less likely to be watching other television networks, even if they have cable.

"It's got incredible brand assets that can be leveraged by any number of companies, companies that want to use it to build or strengthen corporate reputation," Ozier said.

While there aren't commercials like the kind you'd find elsewhere on television, the environment has changed to the point where PBS now allows 30-second messages for underwriters who give at least $2.5 million. The spots still must conform to PBS rules that prohibit calls-to-action. ExxonMobil will run 30-second spots on Masterpiece Theatre next season.

Ozier said that there are other ways to leverage the sponsorship, including the show's Web site, screening events and the chance to send messages in the show's 50,000 or so educators guides that are sent twice a year.

One thing that probably won't be available will be an opportunity for a company to be included in the show's name. In what was a first for PBS, the show became Mobil Masterpiece Theatre in 1996 and later, when the two companies merged, ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre. Ozier said the name change was a one-time gesture of support and thanks to Mobil on the company's 25th year of funding Masterpiece Theatre.

"Essentially, it was a one-time gesture for a huge amount of support," Ozier said. "It's probably not in play this time." On the other hand, if a company stepped up for a long-term sponsorship, Ozier said WGBH wouldn't close the door on the possibility.

Masterpiece Theatre runs between 30-35 new hours of programming a year, beginning in the fall. It's a mixture of dramas from the United Kingdom, Australia and elsewhere, although it also funds original productions in the United States as well. It kicks off its new season this October with a presentation of Thornton Wilder's Our Town, starring Paul Newman. Dockser said that it's unclear how many original hours of programming Masterpiece Theatre will offer if a sponsor isn't found immediately after ExxonMobil's funding ends.

"Masterpiece Theatre will not disappear in 2004 but we don't know what the scope of Masterpiece Theatre will be," Docker said.

ExxonMobil spokeswoman Sandy Duhe said the company's decision had nothing to do with dissatisfaction with the quality of the show or its productions.

"We hold that in very high regard," Duhe said. "This was a decision not based in any way on quality." But after 32 years and a merger of the two oil companies a few years ago, ExxonMobil's philanthropic focus has shifted in favor of public health and the environment.