Fox Experiments With Fewer Ads in Two Dramas

Dubbed 'Remote-Free TV,' Ploy Calls for Fewer, Shorter Pods

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Can U.S. TV networks run fewer ads in their TV shows but charge more for them? News Corp.'s Fox is about to find out. FULL ARTICLE

It's the Ads, Stupid

MediaWorks Viewpoint: Viewers Are Avoiding Ads, not Programs. The Networks Get It. The Ad Agencies Don't.

As I think back over the last four decades of TV advertising that I've experienced as an advertising professional, one thought predominates: A key aspect of the phenomenal power of the medium is that in the past even mediocre ads could effectively sell products and build brands. FULL ARTICLE

Networks Opt for Heavy Dose of Unreality

Rash Report: An Upfront Presentation Wrap-Up

MINNEAPOLIS (AdAge.com) -- Creators and critics, buyers and sellers, and plenty of movers and shakers gathered in one of the world's coastal cultural capitals this week to unveil and schedule video artistry. Sure, that could describe the network upfront presentations, but it also applies to the concurrent conclave in Cannes, now hosting its 61st annual film festival. FULL ARTICLE

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. FULL ARTICLE

3 Minute Ad Age: May 16, 2008

CBS Upfront Gets High Marks From Media Buyers

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- In contrast to NBC's curiously unfocused upfront event earlier in the week, CBS's presentation at Carnegie Hall included all the usual components and pleased media buyers. Ad Age television editor Brian Steinberg was on the scene. In other news in this 3 Minute Ad Age report, a growing number of ad agencies are moving from promoting products to creating and selling them. These include a surprisingly wide array of consumer goods categories from chocolates and scented candles to shaving cream and coffee-table books. FULL ARTICLE

What You Should Have Read, May 16, 2008

It's No Gossip, Ratings Slip Threatens CW Network

The Wall Street Journal takes a close look at Time Warner and CBS experiment in a fifth network and concludes time may be running out for the CW network. Advertisers eager to reach a young demographic initially clamored to sign on to the CW, but have since cooled to the network. The network has lost about 28% of its target audience of 18 to 34 year olds so far this season. Increasingly, people in the industry are asking whether this coming season is the CW's last chance. One person close to the situation confirms that without significant progress in the next year, at least one of the network's owners is likely to abandon the venture. FULL ARTICLE