NBC Digital Efforts Flail, Find Admiration

Media companies such as NBC might be failing with a number of their digital offerings but at least they’re trying, reports MediaWeek (via MarketingVox).

NBC in particular has launched a number of ventures and made grand plans that wound up going more or less nowhere. But the focus they’ve put on digital projects when talking to media buyers shows they’re at least working on adapting to a digital world.

Part of that learning curve has been the realization that the content cannot be restricted to one website. Instead it needs to be sent far and wide online through distribution deals to meet viewers where they are, not necessarily where planners want them to be.

That sort of experimentation process means that while various digital initiatives - such as the NBC/News Corp distribution deal - might get headlines, they are unlikely to play a major part in upcoming ad negotiations. It might even result in less emphasis on digital at this year’s upfront sessions.

Buyers also might be more inclined to split their spending between a traditional TV broadcast and then a fan-run blog or other site online relating to that show. That would allow them to tap into a powerful and passionate audience base for that particular show, an audience the official network site doesn’t always draw.

ABC and Fox are both expected to tout ad opportunities in their respective online players. Across all networks, commercial breaks in online streaming video is expected to be a focus. Such streams have been found to build a show’s audience while adding an additional revenue source.