MediaPost | TV Board

Don't Know Much About History

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 15:42:04 -0400

ABC's announcement that it will launch an updated 1980s version of the classic TV show "The Goldbergs" reminds me that in the history of television, some of the most popular series have been about, well, history. "Gunsmoke," "Bonanza," "Happy Days," "MASH," "Little House on the Prairie" and "The Waltons" were all huge ratings-generators and all were about bygone days. Today it's a lot different. Almost all of contemporary scripted television is set in the present. There are, of course, a few huge exceptions on the cable networks and PBS. "Mad Men," "Downton Abbey" and "Boardwalk Empire" are not only unusual in being great dramas on their own, but they have the added virtue of using history to illuminate the present.

Measuring The Unmeasured At The ARF

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:57:00 -0400

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 makes our jobs very relevant and pivotal to the well-being of a company.

Lifetime's 'The Client List' and 'Army Wives': Two Of The Best Soap Operas On TV

Fri, 14 Jun 2013 10:48:31 -0400

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.

Get Smart

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 09:41:00 -0400

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."

In The Media Lab: Q&A With ABC's Mark Loughney

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 11:12:42 -0400

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.

'Game of Thrones' And Other Violent TV Shows: How Much Is Too Much?

Fri, 07 Jun 2013 10:58:41 -0400

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?

Ovation: America's Only Art Network

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 11:49:47 -0400

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.

Twitter And Television

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 16:10:56 -0400

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.

The Comic-Con Effect: Science Fiction, Supernatural Permeate Prime Time Next Season

Fri, 31 May 2013 12:45:23 -0400

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?

Q&A With Crown Media CEO Bill Abbott

Thu, 30 May 2013 14:49:22 -0400

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.

Will Broadcast Avoid Its Annual Summer Slump? Not For Lack Of Trying

Fri, 24 May 2013 11:23:50 -0400

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).

Less Choice, Please

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:38:05 -0400

Like other Bluth Family fans, I am excitedly looking forward to NetFlix's May 26 launch of a new season of "Arrested Development." If the trailer is any indication, the new season will be as mordantly funny as the original episodes, which ran on Fox from 2003-2006. It says something about the state of contemporary television, though, that a show that barely had enough viewers to stay alive on a major broadcast network, is now being touted as a major growth driver for an online streaming service.

'Constitution USA': The Most Important TV Program You'll See All Year

Mon, 20 May 2013 00:23:35 -0400

In the opening moments of the four-part PBS series "Constitution USA," host Peter Sagal sums up the significance of this program far better than anyone else could. After noting that the Constitution of the United States was written in 1787, Sagal observes, "More than two centuries later, many of us don't have any idea what the Constitution says. Of course, that's never stopped us from arguing about what it means."

Q&A With Media Behavior Institute's Alice K. Sylvester

Sun, 12 May 2013 21:33:40 -0400

Alice Sylvester started her career in ad agencies before joining Media Behavior Institute as COO. Her deep knowledge of research well prepares her for the creative qual / quant application of MBI's TouchPoints study. In my interview with her, Alice talks about TouchPoints, how one measures emotions, agency research applications, and how the media landscape will evolve over the next few years.

Upfront 2013: Attack Of The Shrimp-Eaters

Fri, 10 May 2013 16:11:36 -0400

Let's consider the traditional upfront week. Are its days numbered? If not, they ought to be. Almost everything about it has become a great big expensive waste of time. The crush of outsize events has made the week more of a grueling marathon than a valuable business event. And to what end? Thanks to digital technology and social media, advertisers already know what they're dealing with before the week begins.

Pivot TV Targets The Next Greatest Generation

Wed, 08 May 2013 09:28:38 -0400

Pivot TV, Participant Media's new venture into television, is apt to change the single-screen television paradigm with its blend of multiscreen programming formats targeted to Millennials and their media usage tastes.

'Mad Men' And The Boston Marathon Bombing

Tue, 07 May 2013 12:56:19 -0400

Watching "Man Men," always a disquieting experience, was more unsettling than usual on April 28, coming so soon after the Boston Marathon bombing. The episode in question ("The Flood") revolved around the murder of Martin Luther King, Jr., and was a case study in how people react to national tragedies.

Are Online Versions Of 'All My Children' & 'One Life To Live' TV Game-Changers?

Fri, 03 May 2013 15:01:26 -0400

Media history was made earlier this week when, for the first time, two broadcast series that had been cancelled by their network returned to life largely intact on the Internet. Specifically, new episodes of the long-running and now former ABC Daytime serials "All My Children" and "One Life to Live" produced by Prospect Park's The Online Network and distributed via Hulu, HuluPlus and iTunes became available on Monday; this after an outcry from millions of fans of both shows when ABC saw fit to replace them with unremarkable reality efforts.

Cross-Platform Measurement, With Help From CIMM

Thu, 02 May 2013 13:54:15 -0400

One of the most frenetic areas of measurement development today is in cross platform. Creative and scalable solutions are being crafted that enable programmers and advertisers to gain a more complete picture of how the usage of various media platforms compare to and blend within each other. There is no standard yet, but there are a myriad of possible semi-solutions that can link some, but not yet all, platforms under one metric. Progress is being made and it is only a matter of time (and data) before we get to a complete and scaleable measurement.

Do Sweeps Make Sense In The Age Of TV Anytime?

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:52:45 -0400

Industry observers have been questioning the value and wisdom of the three traditional sweeps periods (four if you count July) for as long as I can remember. It likely would have made sense to do away with them altogether many years ago. Given the current state of the media in general and television viewing in particular, the continuation of this antiquated practice seems inane. We're in the era of TV Anytime, and that includes any time of the year. Why focus on what may or may not happen during three months?

Big-Data Issues Discussed At Conference

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:29:00 -0400

Want to know what keeps CMOs awake at night? Call it revenge of the nerds, but according to John Kennedy from IBM, it is Big Data preparedness. 70% of all CMOs polled by IBM said their number-one fear is trying to figure out how to harness the Big Data tsunami.

TV's Missing Middle Class

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:32:41 -0400

Americans who love "Downton Abbey" and its penetrating observations on British class conflict are less comfortable with shows that highlight class differences in the U.S. This reflects an enduring American myth that we have a classless society. Would that that were true. America has multiple social classes, and Americans are afflicted with considerable status anxiety.

'A' Is For 'Television'

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:03:30 -0400

If Apple's impact on the mobile phone industry is duplicated - even partially - when Apple enters the world of television displays, then cable and broadcast networks, as well as traditional content creators, have reason to be concerned. I'm increasingly convinced that they don't see what's coming.

New Scripted Standouts: Sundance Channel's 'Rectify,' BBC America's 'Orphan Black,' Syfy's 'Defiance'

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:03:29 -0400

No network this year has delivered more fascinating original dramatic programs than Sundance Channel, with its recent seven-hour mini-series "Top of the Lake" and next week's new entry "Rectify," its first wholly owned original series. If this keeps up, Sundance is going to find itself in the company of AMC, FX, TNT, USA Network and other basic cable networks that continue to distinguish themselves as providers of some of the most compelling scripted dramas on television.

We're Here: Q&A With Here TV's Josh Rosenzweig

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 09:57:07 -0400

Josh Rosenzweig, senior vice president of original programming and development at Here TV, started out as a filmmaker and director in California before making the transition to the corporate side of the business. In my interview with him, Josh talks about Here's mission, programming, multiplatform efforts, its audience skew, competitive set (spoiler alert: there isn't any) and the celebration of its tenth anniversary.

The Fall Of 'American Idol'

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 15:53:53 -0400

No doubt about it, the once-mighty "Idol" has finally begun circling the drain. This leaves Fox in a position of intense vulnerability, especially as the long-time No. 1 network among the prized 18-34 and 18-49 demographic groups. What in the world will Fox do without a super-strong "Idol" -- or without "Idol" at all?

TRA Licenses Nielsen Data

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 06:56:10 -0400

TRA announced that it would begin to license Nielsen data, including it in its media analytics interface. This announcement, made during a breakfast panel at CBS' Paley Center, was part of a bigger discussion of Big Data -- or, as TRA CEO Mark Lieberman says "naturally occurring data" in the media marketplace.

More Lessons Television Is Teaching Us In 2013

Fri, 05 Apr 2013 09:57:40 -0400

This continues to be a highly educational year for anyone working in or around the television business, especially where programming is concerned. Here are the latest lessons:

What's Next For TV?

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 10:48:45 -0400

If there's anything constant about television these days, it's the constant change. From digital compression a few years ago to today's connected TVs, multi- and cross-platforming, second screens, STBs, OTT and Big Data sets, it's hard to keep pace.

Some Questions About 'Mad Men'

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 08:29:33 -0400

You may have heard that "Mad Men" is returning for season six on April 7. Those of us who have been waiting for this day since the enigmatic end of season five have a few questions on their minds, including: