Just like everything else in the media landscape today, research is undergoing challenges that require it to transform the way it does business. There is now more to measure -- and more that is unmeasured. There are more platforms and content options, many more large and small competitors for consumer attention and affection, and more data to mine for insights. Researchers now wear many more hats: storyteller, neuroscientist, big-data maven, thought leader and analytics expert. We now need a working knowledge of ACR, STB data, cross-platform relationships, addressable opportunities and privacy pitfalls. The list sometimes appears endless. But it also …

As we saw last season with the creative challenges that compromised ABC's "Revenge," which went from white-hot in its freshman year to lukewarm in a dramatic sophomore slump, the maintenance of an effective prime-time soap opera that does not revolve around doctors, lawyers, detectives, supernatural beings or the kinds of characters found only in science fiction is way more difficult than it looks.

Smart TV or "connected TV" is a phrase used to describe the current trend of integration of Internet connectivity (Ethernet and WiFi) into high-definition television sets and devices, as well as the technological convergence between computers and HDTV's into one unit, such as Google TV or the mythical "AppleTV HDTV set."

Mark Loughney, vice president of sales and strategy research for ABC, started in academia -- but customer satisfaction research interested him so much that he decided to transition into the business side of market research. That move resulted in a stellar career that has included stints at MTV Networks, TNN, Nielsen and ABC. In my interview with him, Mark talks about measurement, cross-platform, industry trends, the DIsney Media & Ad Lab, and future trends in the industry.

What does it say about television - or, more to the point, the television audience - when one of the most buzzed-about programs of the year is an episode of a dramatic series filled with unspeakable physical and emotional violence?

Bank clerk T.S. Eliot wrote poetry at night. There are many of us who, like Eliot, "bleed between two lives": left brain by day, right brain by night. But then there are those fortunate people at Ovation who are surrounded by art as part of their corporate experience every day.

I think we can all agree that Twitter is a remarkable platform that's having a significant impact on television. I'm not sure we can actually agree what that impact is, though.

What has the massive multitiered marketing power of Comic-Con wrought? Or should we hold the outsize success of AMC's "The Walking Dead" responsible for the unprecedented infusion next season of series structured around supernatural creatures, super-powered beings and science-fiction and fantasy scenarios that will dominate the broadcast networks?

Although Bill Abbott started his career as a buyer at an agency, he soon moved into research, where he honed his strong analytical skills, and then on to affiliates and sales. But it was in research, according to Bill, where he gained his strong grounding for his future media roles, learning what drives the bottom line and what determines success and failure. His current position as the CEO of Crown Media gives him the ability to put all his experience to good use in steering his corporation through a sea of media change and disruption.

The traditional broadcast television season is an outdated concept -- right up there with quarterly sweeps periods and upfront week -- but it continues nevertheless, formally marking the beginning in September and the end in May of a nine-month period when most network programming is supposed to be new. Typically, broadcast goes dead after that final day in May (this year the 22nd).