Sucherman Consulting Group

Research has long been a staple of upfront presentations. Network executives might tout how their ratings are soaring among beer-drinking men ages 25 to 54. Or, cite data about how viewers stayed tuned to the programming longer at 10 p.m. than competitors. That type of spin is still around. But in a sign of how much advertiser hunger to demonstrate ROI and follow consumers to new platforms has increased, research in many forms seems to be increasingly finding its way into network recruitment. Take the Turner presentation on Wednesday. Steve Koonin, who oversees TBS and TNT, spoke about “harnessing the power of big data,” while mentioning a new research initiative tabbed “Athena.” (Presumably, it will be more successful than another measurement effort named after a Greek mythological figure, the failed Project Apollo.) Koonin also spoke about moving beyond traditional demographics (age and gender) when evaluating where to place ad dollars. The matter is close to Turner’s heart with Conan O’Brien drawing ratings below competitors, but impressive social media activity. Read More ›

During a week when the TV networks are rolling out their schedules, they are also taking pains to talk about how they are getting off the grid. Every TV net boasts special programming – once-a-year fare that runs the gamut from The Super Bowl to a showing of “It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” – but the next TV season looks to be filled with specials that are a little more so, as well as short-run series that have a “watch-now-or-miss-them-forever” kind of quality. Fox will unveil a limited-run revival of its venerable “24” spy serial, and Kevin Reilly, Fox’s entertainment chairman, suggested ealier this week that more editions of the series in its new format were not a foregone conclusion. And don’t forget about its science-exploring “Cosmos” limited series featuring “Family Guy” creator Seth MacFarlane as host. ABC will broadcast a new special based on the “Toy Story” movie franchise from its Disney-owned sister, Pixar – complete with the original characters and the actors (including Tom Hanks) who gave them voice. NBC is rolling out a live three-hour broadcast of “The Sound of Music.” Even CBS, perhaps the most vocal proponent of good ol’ fashioned broadcast television is getting into the game by devoting Monday nights in the fall to two limited-run series. “Hostage” will run from the fall into early January and “Intelligence” will take over the slot in 2014. Read More ›

Following the NewFronts, the battle lines in Web video are being drawn, and YouTube might be on the wrong side. After several years of testing, clients and their agencies are eager to buy video inventory that is guaranteed against particular audience demographics, just like they’ve been doing with TV for decades. The biggest ad agency holding companies are convalescing around Nielsen’s Online Campaign Ratings data or comScore’s Validated Campaign Essentials (VCE) as their preferred currency in Web video, according to multiple buyers and sellers. As are top marketers like Procter and Gamble. “We were in beta mode, and now we’re trying to use it for as many campaigns as possible,” said Donnie Williams, chief media officer at Horizon. “We are leaning into OCR. I want to buy video on audience guarantees.” “There is a lot of demand in the market for this,” added a top video player. That’s not always good news for Web publishers, which typically have to significantly overdeliver impressions just to meet client goals. It may be not such good news for YouTube, which is refusing to sell inventory in this fashion. Read More ›

The two major Spanish-language television companies delivered an unusual pitch to advertisers: Our viewers watch our programs live. They don’t digitally record them to fast-forward through the commercials. Both Univision Communications and Telemundo on Tuesday sought to reinforce a message that Spanish-language television is a better value for advertisers. The major networks, including Fox, NBC and ABC, have been bleeding viewers, but the audiences have been growing on Spanish-language channels. The two companies touted their new season lineups to advertisers in separate presentations in New York. Both claimed that their viewers were more engaged and more passionate than viewers of the four major broadcast networks. Univision noted that more than 90% of viewing of Spanish-language shows is done in real time, compared with about 65% for the English-language networks. Univision, which boasts the fifth-ranked television network in the U.S., and Telemundo, which is owned by NBCUniversal, are hoping to ride the rising wave of Latino influence in the U.S. to expand their slice of the multibillion-dollar television advertising pie. Read More ›

Remember the Facebook Phone? OK, it wasn’t actually a whole phone from Facebook (FB), but it was an Android phone (the HTC First) that Facebook had “forked” and equipped with Facebook Home, an all-FB, all-the-time user interface. And maybe you don’t entirely remember it, for two reasons: It was pretty underwhelming, and no one ever bought one. Well, maybe someone did, but clearly not in any great number. Which is why the HTC First is on the ropes. According to tech site BGR, AT&T (T) is looking to cut the phone from its roster. Sales have been so poor since the April release of the phone that the carrier initially dropped the First’s original price of $99 (with a two-year contract) to 99 cents one month later. Not only is the hardware tanking, but the whole Facebook Home experiment seems to be flailing. According to Ars Technica, reviewers of the downloadable interface are trashing it on Google Play, where Home is sold. Read More ›

If you walk into my living room you will see a standard, flat television surrounded by a dozen gadgets. There’s a Microsoft Xbox, a Sony PlayStation, the Apple TV, and there’s even a computer with a wireless mouse. But you might not recognize one of the gadgets, a round black ball that I haven’t used in a year: the Nexus Q made by Google. The Nexus Q was supposed to be Google’s invitation to the living room, streaming content from mobile devices to your TV, and it promised to help the company compete with the other Web-connected gadgets that frame most people’s televisions today. Yet last August, a few weeks after the unveiling of the Nexus Q, Google indefinitely postponed shipment of the device. Don’t expect Google to pull back the curtains and show off a new and improved black ball at this year’s Google I/O, the company’s annual developers conference. The Nexus Q will not be revived there, according to two people briefed on Google’s plans. Google did not respond to a request for comment. Read More ›