How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?
Getting Around During Upfront Week
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Ad Age's MediaWorks has put together this map of where the various networks are holding their presentations. Click one of the placemarks on the map to find out when each event starts, where you need to be, the best subway route to get there, and whether you'll be getting breakfast, lunch or a cocktail.
Forget Multiplatform, Fox Bets on TV Shows
Bottom Line: It All Starts With Broadcast
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- At a time when marketers are increasingly curious about media venues other than broadcast TV, executives from Fox network said they intended to keep their focus on the traditional living-room screen, while launching new programs for the 2008-09 season in staggered fashion.
CBS Shows Rather Than Tells How to Buy
At Carnegie Hall, Celebs Explain Syndie, Radio, Digital Opportunities
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Before presenting its 2008-09 programming lineup at its upfront presentation yesterday, CBS spent about 45 minutes talking about opportunities in outdoor advertising, syndication, radio and online. CBS was thus able to do something the other networks have so far not: demonstrate how broadcast-TV content makes an appealing option when extended into media venues that are decidedly ancillary to traditional TV.
This Year, Univision Wants Those English-Language Dollars
Notes Its Ratings Are Up While Broadcast Is Down
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Univision Communications took direct aim at English-language networks, telling the audience at yesterday's upfront presentation that 60% of Univision's audience are unduplicated viewers who watch only the Spanish-language network, that viewership of the English-language networks is down by 13% while Univision's is up 23%, and that the average viewer of Spanish-language news is 40 years old compared to 61 for the other networks.
Nickelodeon and Group M Close to Upfront Deal
$300 Million Pact Would Include Kids and Adult Brands
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Nickelodeon's Kids and Family Group is close to wrapping one of the first major upfront deals of this year with Group M, according to two executives familiar with the negotiations. The deal is said to be valued in excess of $300 million.
Turner Offers to Place Ads Next to Relevant Content
Also Introduces Slate That Includes 'Truth in Advertising'
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- TNT and TBS are out to prove they could play with the big boys of broadcast. The Turner Broadcasting properties were the first entertainment cable networks to vie for media buyers' ad dollars during the week traditionally dominated by the five national broadcast networks.
CW Fills Schedule With the Rich and Pretty
Aims to Attract Young Women With '90210' Remake, 'Filthy Rich'
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- CW's goal for Year Two: target young women. The UPN/WB hybrid had a rough go of broadly reaching the youth demo last year, but the buzzworthy (if not ratings) success of "Gossip Girl" has the network chasing after the female segment in a bigger way this year. What's in store for next season? Lots and lots of pretty young things playing at being rich.
CBS Builds Another Comedy Night on Wednesdays
'New Adventures of Old Christine' to Anchor Lineup of Midweek Sitcoms
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- CBS Corp. is placing a bet on an out-of-favor format: the sitcom. The company's flagship network, known for having one of the most durable stable of programs on broadcast TV and a solid Monday comedy schedule, said it would attempt to launch another night anchored by comedy for the 2008-09 TV season.
ESPN Plans Expansion of 'SportsCenter'
Rolls Out Multiplatform Measurement, Ad Research on Sports Fans
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- After going the musical route for its upfront debut last year, ESPN turned to the core of its brand, "SportsCenter," as the anchor for its upfront presentation to advertisers today in New York. The Disney sports network recruited anchors Scott Van Pelt and Steve Levy to host a 90-minute presentation that touched on multiplatform measurement, ad research that gets inside sports fans' brains and the expansion of "SportsCenter" itself.
ABC Only Adds Two New Shows for Fall
Unveils Advertising Value Index to Help Track How Well Ads Perform
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- If you liked ABC's prime-time schedule this season, chances are you'll be quite satisfied with it come the autumn. The Walt Disney network today said it would bring back most of its 2007-08 lineup and add only two new shows in the fall. ABC also unveiled what it called an "Advertising Value Index" to help marketers judge how well their ads would perform on the network.
NBC Universal Gives Media Buyers an 'Experience'
Forgoes Network Hard Sell in Favor of Showing All Media Opportunities
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- NBC doesn't have as many ratings points to sell advertisers, so yesterday it dished out plenty of glitz and flash, with the hope of enticing marketers to ponder the larger ad possibilities of its parent company, NBC Universal. In an odd walk-through experience that extended through the the Manhattan-based NBC Store into a tent surrounding the ice-skating rink at Rockefeller Plaza, NBC Universal led media buyers, reporters and advertisers on an eye-popping journey -- well, a short trip -- across its entertainment holdings.
Don't Expect TV Sellers to Exceed Last Year's $9.1B
Credit Crisis and Focus on Accountability Likely Downers for Upfront
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Pointing to marketers worried about a sputtering economy, a credit crisis and a looming recession, analysts expect advertisers to hold tight to their purse strings and cut back on ad spending on TV, moving money instead to cheaper and more-accountable media venues.
Liguori Leads Surging Fox
Nonconformist Network Only One Looking Up
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- For the past several years, owing to choices that fly in the face of conventional TV-industry wisdom, Fox has set the tone for broadcast TV.
Super Bowl Spots Hit $3 Million
NBC's Push to Sell Early, Sell High Reveals Tough Times in TV Market
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- NBC is comfortable with its bold move to seek $3 million for a 30-second spot in Super Bowl XLIII, given it has research to suggest advertising in this TV-ratings bonanza comes with a guaranteed return on the investment. But the fact that the Peacock network opened bidding on the spots in the big game even before the other networks have given their upfront presentations points to just how tough the TV marketplace has become.
What TV Metrics the Buyers Want
Ad Age Asks Top Buyers What They Need to Track What Consumers Buy
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- If last year's most-used upfront word was "engagement," this year's seems to be "granular." But both essentially are being used to mean: "Get me data that goes beyond reach to show me how consumers behave." Several prominent media-buying executives tell Advertising Age about the metrics they'd like to see the industry adopt.
It's Not Just TV Networks Doing All the Selling
Others Infiltrate Buying Period to Woo Marketers Emphasizing Media Mix
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The broadcast nets won't be the only ones vying for upfront dollars during the next six weeks. An increasing number of web portals, out-of-home companies and cinema chains are starting to get in on TV's biggest buying period, as media-mix marketing becomes the strategy of choice for advertisers who aren't necessarily prepared to do the bulk of their buys in TV this year.
Silverman on the Benefits of Being Ahead of Schedule
And Why You'll See an Updated Version of 'Knight Rider' but Not 'B.J. and the Bear'
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Ben Silverman, co-chairman, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, was already known for his knack for building entertainment concepts and weaving marketers into them when he ran his production shop, Reveille. Now he's doing the same for the Peacock Network. Mr. Silverman discusses results he's seen from NBC's decision to unveil its 2008-09 programming schedule ahead of rivals and explains why shows from the past can make a splash in the present.
Honda Tries Different Shtick in NBC's 'Last Comic Standing'
Eschews Regular Spots; Will Feature Comics Riding in Automaker's New Pilot
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- When fans of "Last Comic Standing" tune in to the show starting in late May, they may notice something funny about one of the commercial breaks. A bunch of comedians who aren't in the show will appear in ads -- doing their shticks in 30 seconds while riding in a new Honda Pilot with one of the show's hosts in the driver's seat.
Tune In for the Continuing Saga: 'Live and Let Buy'
Road to the Upfront: SoapNet
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- As ABC gears up for its annual upfront advertiser gala next week, a cheeky faux-soap-opera video starring its top sales execs and many of its top media buyers has been making the rounds at media agencies.
How Did Last Year's Upfront Darlings Do?
Rash Report: Few New Shows Thrived This Season
MINNEAPOLIS (AdAge.com) -- It's the eve of upfront week, the springtime ritual that unveils the fall season. But after a winter of discontent due to the writers strike, few of the highly hyped programs have had an impact on this week, let alone the year.
Why Dove, Pepsi and LG Helped MTV With Its Upfront Pitch
Road to the Upfront: MTV Networks
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- MTV Networks trotted out its biggest music and comedy talent to plug their shows but also marketing heads from Dove, Pepsi and LG Mobile to provide testimony on recent campaigns they launched through MTVN channels.
Analyst: Upfront Sales to Fall 2% to 14%
Cites Economic Woes, Ratings Decline and Writers Strike
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Broadcast TV networks' upfront advertising sales will be down this year, posting a drop of between 2% and 14%, a leading Wall Street analyst said. A "material decline is probable given ratings declines, the disruption in the development cycle due to the recent writers' strike and economic woes," Jessica Reif Cohen of Merrill Lynch said in a report published yesterday.
This Year's Upfront Take Likely to Be Down
At TVWeek/Ad Age Summit: Climate of Caution, Concern
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- With a faltering economy chief in many marketers' minds, the total number of dollars committed in this year's broadcast-TV upfront could be flat to down, several media executives said today.
NBC Begins to Strike Integration Deals for Fall
Silverman: 'Going to Start Locking in Pricing' During Coming Weeks
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The upfront market hasn't started officially, but that hasn't stopped NBC from forming plans with ad buyers and marketers. "A number of the agencies and advertisers have started to connect with us about specific business, and we've begun a number of discussions," Ben Silverman, co-chairman of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, told Advertising Age in a brief interview yesterday.
A&E Gets 'The Cleaner'; History Gets Mark Burnett Show
Road to the Upfront: A&E Television Networks
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- At a presentation to advertisers April 28 at the Morgan Library, executives of A&E Television Networks confirmed that their companies are no longer going to limit themselves to programming about archaelogical digs.
No Sales Pitch Is Too Dirty for This Cabler
Road to the Upfront: Discovery Networks
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Discovery Networks unleashed a platoon of personalities known from its documentary series, plus themed food and drinks, at a presentation to advertisers at Lincoln Center in New York yesterday.
Breathing New Life Into a Refocused Cabler
Road to the Upfront: Oxygen
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- After spending its first seven years in the shadow of Oprah Winfrey, an early investor in the network, Oxygen is finally ready for its spotlight. The latest entrant in NBC Universal's portfolio of cable networks has undergone an exhaustive re-branding, both internally and externally, and will enter this year's upfront with a completely fresh perspective.
Super-serving Its Audience
Road to the Upfront: BET Networks
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Problem-solving will be the main part of BET's upfront strategy for advertisers this year, as it continues to diversify and scale its many distribution platforms.
Network 'Bigger' Than One Runaway 'Runway' Show
Road to the Upfront: Bravo
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Round Two of the Bravo vs. Lifetime battle. Lauren Zalaznick, president-Bravo Media, played it cool and earnest during her network's upfront presentation to press this morning in New York. Of the lawsuit NBC Universal filed last week against the Weinstein Co. over the rights to "Project Runway," Ms. Zalaznick could only officially offer a "no comment." She pointed to reports from yesterday's Lifetime upfront, during which Harvey Weinstein offered three years of servitude to Jeff Zucker as a peace offering for moving Bravo's top-rated show to Lifetime.
Lifetime Re-brands With an Airplane and a 'Runway'
Road to the Upfront: Lifetime
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Hot on the heels of its much-publicized acquisition of "Project Runway," Lifetime made the first move Monday with an upfront presentation to members of the press in New York at midtown eatery Le Bernardin.
Tween Stars, and Marketing Tie-Ins, in the Making
Road to the Upfront: Disney Channel
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Following on the heels of its recent smash hits "Hannah Montana" and "High School Musical," Disney made its pitch to advertisers at an intimate event Tuesday in New York. Since the network hasn't accepted traditional commercials since its inception, the only way for brands to get involved is through extensive retail partnerships or individual show sponsorships.
What Shaky Economy? Hispanic Nets Bet Ad Growth Will Continue
Two Channels Will Make Their Upfront Debuts, While No. 2 Telemundo Will Join NBC's Event
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- This year there will be new faces in the Hispanic TV upfront, including young channels Mega TV and V-me, and a few absentees, such as No. 2 Spanish-language network Telemundo. Then there's market leader Univision, roaring into the upfront to lure marketers in a shaky economy with the confident theme "Univision equals your growth engine."
Translating Success Online to Shows on Cable
Road to the Upfront: Scripps Networks
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Scripps is positioning itself as a scaleable home to niche programming both on TV and online, and is finding increasing synergy points along the way.
Turner Banks on 'Star Wars'
Road to the Upfront: The Cartoon Network
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Cartoon Network is beefing up its resources to become a stronger player in the increasingly competitive kids' entertainment marketplace. In its annual presentation to advertisers, the network hosted George Lucas for a Q&A with Turner Animation President Stuart Snyder about the launch of the "Star Wars: Clone Wars" movie in August and a related full-length series on Cartoon Network in the fall.
No :30s Here, Just Sponsorship Galore
Road to the Upfront: Sundance Channel in Selling Mode
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Making its annual pitch to advertisers, The Sundance Channel will be selling a multitude of new programming and branded-entertainment opportunities in this year's upfront, but also for sale is the network itself.
NBC Schedule Reveals Turmoil in TV
Road to the Upfront: Slate Includes Just Four Fall Shows, Other Experiments
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- NBC today unveiled a programming schedule whose broad strokes reflect some of the new realities for network TV: a limited number of program launches, potentially shorter runs of new shows, and nontraditional alliances with advertisers and other media outlets to keep some programs on the air.
Characters, and Brands, Welcome
Road to the Upfront: USA Network
The lines between broadcast and cable continue to blur going into this year's upfront. Aggressively hoping to lead that charge this year is USA Network, the top-rated cable network across all demos in prime time and home to broadcast-caliber shows like "Monk," "Burn Notice" and "The Starter Wife" -- not to mention its ongoing coverage of the WWE and its status as the new home to "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," a refugee from NBC.
MTV: We're Multiplatform Too
Upfront Event Set for May 8 to Include On-Air, Online
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- NBC Universal and CBS aren't the only media companies using this year's upfront to highlight company-wide sales opportunities. MTV Networks will host an upfront event May 8 in New York at the Nokia Theater in Times Square to focus on multiplatform opportunities across all of MTVN's on-air and online properties, including MTV, VH1, Comedy Central, TV Land, Spike and CMT.
Hallmark Channel on the Upswing
Family-Friendly Network Buoyed by Boomers
If 2007 was a booming year for the Hallmark Channel, 2008 is poised to be a boomer year. The cable network made its upfront presentation to advertisers in New York on March 25. The network, which saw ad revenues increase by 28.1% from $204 million in 2006 to $245.9 million in 2007, announced plans to produce 30 original movies by year's end.
NBC Set to Unveil '08-'09 Schedule Next Week
Meets With Marketers One Month Ahead of Rivals
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- NBC will unveil its 2008-2009 programming schedule next week, breaking a tradition of broadcast networks waiting until mid-May to communicate such information.
Re-engineering Pods and Remaking Classic Stories
Road to the Upfront: Sci-Fi Channel
Sci-Fi has become the little network that could, finishing 2007 as the fourth-highest-rated cable network among viewers 25 to 54. Driving that significant growth was the huge success of "Tin Man," its four-part "Wizard of Oz"-inspired miniseries. And SciFi.com has become a growing asset for the network, averaging 3.4 million unique visits a month.
Broadcast Networks Must Still Aim Big
NBC Universal's Jeff Zucker on Why Niche Is No Good for NBC
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Broadcast-network TV's place in the media landscape is changing, acknowledged NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker this morning, and as such, consumers can probably expect less scripted fare, but more shows aimed at reaching broad swaths of audience.
Cable Mainstay Becomes a Digital Giant
Road to the Upfront: Weather Channel
NEW YORK (Ad Age) -- The Weather Channel made its presentation to advertisers March 13 in New York. While not known for its viewers tuning in for a long length of time, the cable channel enjoys an online reach unrivaled by any TV brand. Weather.com is one of the top 20 sites on the web, regularly garnering 34 million unique visits a month, according to comScore. And its mobile site is one of the top five most-trafficked in the U.S., averaging 6 million visits a month, according to Telephia.
Orange Splat Aims to Earn Green Points
Road to the Upfront: Nickelodeon
The cable upfront season kicked off with a splat this week when Nickelodeon became the first major network to host its presentation to advertisers at Manhattan's Hammerstein Ballroom. Following a tradition of brightly colored celeb-packed upfronts, this year's event was no exception. MTV CEO Judy McGrath began by stating Nickelodeon's overall brand theme this year is to be virtually everywhere. That includes theme parks, retail, cruise ships and movie theaters through partnerships with Marriott, Royal Carribbean, Mall of America and DreamWorks Animation. The orange-hued kids net is also eyeing a new color, green, via its Big Green Help initiative.
Too Small for Nielsen to Measure? Check the Set-top Box
Starcom USA Issues New Policy for Start-up Cable Networks
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Attention, cable start-ups: Just because you're new doesn't mean you don't have to supply marketers with relevant data about who might be watching you -- at least those represented by Starcom USA. The Publicis Groupe media agency unveiled a new policy that it will not negotiate upfront deals with networks too small to make it into national ratings data and those that cannot offer a "dimension of quantitative metrics data."
CBS Says Yes to Multiplatforms, No to Shrimp
Moonves Nixes Tavern on the Green Party
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Looks like the shrimp cocktail at this year's upfront will be as scarce as this year's network ad inventory. CBS is canceling its popular annual party at New York's Tavern on the Green. The event -- which always made plentiful shrimp one of its attractions -- has long been a mainstay of "upfront week," those four days in May when the big broadcast networks tout their coming fall schedules to advertisers.
TNT, TBS Joins Big Boys of Broadcast for Upfront Week
Turner Entertainment Schedules Presentation for May 14
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The week of May 12 just got a little bit busier for marketers and media buyers. In an aggressive move to position TNT, TBS and truTV alongside the broadcast networks during this year's upfront sales period, Turner Entertainment will unveil its programming slates the morning of May 14 at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom, during the same week as ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, the CW and, for the second consecutive year, ESPN.
Marketers Demand More From TV
At ANA TV Forum: Seeking More Efficient Pricing, More Accountability
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- As broadcast ratings continue to erode and marketers lose faith in TV as the go-to reach medium, the onus is on buyers and sellers in this year's upfront marketplace to show its accountability and effectiveness.
Marketers, Agencies Look to End TV Integration Fees
4A's, ANA Create Task Force to Address Outdated 'Legacy Charge'
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The price of a TV commercial routinely runs into the tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars. And if that wasn't enough, the three oldest broadcast-TV networks have for decades required another fistful of cash known as an "integration fee." Two big ad-industry trade groups are now fighting to keep that money in advertisers' coffers.
Wait Till May, and You May Miss Much of the Upfront
Broadcast TV Networks Including NBC in Talks With Advertisers Already
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- The wrangling between advertisers and broadcast networks over new shows has started earlier and earlier over the last few years -- well before May, when networks put on their show-biz laden presentations to woo more than $9 billion in prime-time ad dollars.
NBC's Upfront Presentation Now a 'Spotlight Event'
Showcase for all NBC Universal Properties, Not Just the Peacock Network
NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- NBC promises big changes to the upfront sales process, TV's annual ritual of wooing advertisers and getting them to commit a large chunk of their yearly marketing budgets to the networks. But like any other process mired in tradition, some of the rules can be hard to ignore.
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