Spot on Tom. Lots of opportunities out there in TV's transition to OTT to solve, from fragmentataion to user-acceptable ad loads to automated buying and selling with balanced yield managemed (for both sellers and buyers). It will be fun to watch!

Its time (and appropriate pricing) has indeed arrived.

Lots of challenges around data (how do we aggregate ever-tinier program audiences into meaningful-sized buys?), consumer attention (TV spots remain far too long for 2018 attention spans), and availability of ad-free options for the viewers with the highest HH incomes, and more.

Those are all opportunities for the companies that have the courage to tackle them. IMHO too many brand marketers are still treating all of digital as if it's direct marketing when that should not always be its function in the mix. This, too, is an opportunity.

Thanks Koenraad for the update from Belgium, and not surprised to see some other markets have followed suit. I think one other reason to do away with the commission is perhaps to be able to negotiate easier deals with the agency hold co’s? As you said it helps determine volume and discount for advertisers, but perhaps also makes the total volume deal with agency hold co’s easier to calculate? Dank je!

James is right aout airline stocks doing well and that the airlines are less interested in the consumer experience than other verticals. The reason for both is that the legacy airlines have no real competiton. Management has it easy boosting profits in what is essentially an ologopoly. 

Seems to be accurate about DOT's lack of interest in the flying public's dilemma, but airline stocks have seemingly soared. It appears to be a beautiful model; every time there's a spike in jet fuel, hike fees...and those fees don't go down, they are sticky.  What's amazing is the airline industry basically ignores, with apparent glee, the basics of improving the consumer or customer experience. Most other industry verticals can't.

In Belgium the agency commission has been abolished from 2016 onwards, starting with the main TV stations in the North (Dutchspeaking), followed by the TV stations in the South (Frenchspeaking, including the Belgian RTL) the next year and then by most other media. The official reason was to make rates more comparable with online. The real reason is that it makes the total discount advertisers receive more dependent upon volume and therefore strengthens the position of the main sales houses (that are under pressure from more niche players). 

They were generic enough for anyone, bank, movie promo, cell phone, but even if one was for the bathroom tile we are currently in the market for, the redundancy would have killed any chance of a purchase. 

Great commentary George..although this problem extends well beyond Hulu's commercial rotations, I take your point that they SHOULD be able to do better, considering the targeting capabilities.  Did they at least over-serve ads for products and services that are relevant to you and your wife?

Way back around 1968 BBDO abandoned the 15% commission,  offering certain advertisers we shared with other agencies a discount---a lower fee to around 12%----if they gave us more brands and increased our billings. So motivated, we incresed our profits by virtue of the economies of scale---but, in the long run this helped to destroy the 15% commission concept for full service agency work for virtually all clients as rival shops soon made similar offers.

Wayne, curious as to whether NFL Red Zone is accounted for at all in this analysis? 

Safe ? It is not just about width but depth. On my last flight, there were 2 very fat people in the middle and aisle seats who couldn't even put their trays down. If there were an emergency to get out and they can't move, do I, at 5 feet tall, just get up and walk over and on top of them since they couldn't move ? No doubt, other people have their stories as well for every point you make and more.

If you are going to boycott then you do it on the busiest day and all airlines. Pressure from their friends only help. Except for a few airlines, they are all part of a group like Star Alliance. However, there will not be a boycott. People still feel to entitled to be inconvenienced.

I keep the ad-supported version for "market research" as well. You're right - a few big advertisers are eating up the inventory, and I see the same spots over-and-over-and-over-and-over, sometimes even twice in the same set break!

As a local marketer, I want to include Hulu, but their minimum spend is just to high. If they want to keep everyone happy and help fix that revenu problem, they should do a reality check.

My bridge will cost less than yours and it won't hurt customers. Once upon a time there were 3 bears.

ADVERTORIAL: It must be labeled as such. That'll work.

so that it makes it look a lot worse than it (allegedly) was...she's losing credibility fast so the left supporters are sensionalizing, want you to believe there are more than just the one. 

Not sure why the word allegation is made a plural.

Perhaps, Mark, but now those phones will be centrally connected via the RV.

Good points, Mark, this is just the direction some carmakers are heading.

Less leg room, smaller seats and bathrooms, charges for necessary features that were once included in the fare, etc. etc.

When will people say enough is enough? The airlines have shown they are greedy enterprises with no soul, as they leverage their virtual monopoly, especially in the fortress hubs. Industry consolidation and informal coordination (i.e. collusion) have given the airlines freedom to do what they want to increase profits, regardless of how they discriminate against families with children, tall and large people, leisure travelers, etc.

The DOT is obviously insensitive to what is happening, as they adhere to the administration’s agenda of fewer regulations everywhere. Congress will make a lot of noise, but do nothing meaningful, as they need the contributions of the airlines for re-election campaigns and the occasional free upgrade.

In an attempt to be heard, the public should boycott the three legacy airlines (American, Delta, and United) on Nov. 22 and Dec. 25. Those are traditionally light traffic days (especially for high yield business travelers) and the other airlines should be able to accommodate most of the demand. Tell your friends and family to boycott the legacy airlines if they are tired of being victimized.

Is this for the the same RV-ers that have flip phones, no e-mail address and have to be at
Bob Evan's restaurant before 4:30 for the earlybird specials ???? Jus' askin'.

So the poor guy driving with his elbow hanging out the window risks the Gilloutene treatment to his arm when the car turns to panic mode??
What will happen is that people will rely on this and then when it shuts down
(HOW MUCH DOES THIS ADD TO THE PRICE OF THE CAR???) they will not know how to react defensively.  Similar to the back up cameras, if they don't work people have no concept of distance. The same for the self parking option.   How many can't parallel
park because of this.   I know the cars of the future .........blah.blah.......

Just not ready to turn over my safety to a cluster of plastic circuit boards that are made in a third world county and will eventually have the excuse of "just reboot your car".

Can someone please clarify something for me.

Most acquired content is to fit the 30 or 60 minute programming schedules.   So a '60 minute' programme may be just (say) 44 minutes to allow for 16 minutes of ads, promos, idents, CSAs etc.

So if they have a 60 minute slot, and reduce the (paid) ad content doesn't this just mean that they are stuffing the breaks full of other non-programme content.   The programme content doesn't just magically become a couple of minutes longer because they run less paid ads.