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Upfront bigwig The cable upfront has slipped into what buyers are calling a bifurcated market - that is, essentially two cable markets, with the big players like Turner, NBCU and MTV Networks in one and everyone else in the other.
The big cable nets are following in the wake of their broadcast brethren, moving inventory quickly and at premium prices - high single-digit increases in CPM in some cases - and they could finish writing business as early as next week, Media Life writes. Turner is said to have written nearly half of its business in just a few days.
For the others, the upfront could drag on for weeks.
The difference is the increasing number of “must-have” shows on top cable networks, which has buyers speeding to write business lest they lose out on scarce advertising inventory. By packaging those top shows with less popular inventory, they are able to sell large quantities quickly.
The cable upfront is expected to be higher than last year in total dollars, at about $8 billion or more. The broadcast upfront wrapped slightly higher than last year, as well, at about $9.23 billion.
Meanwhile, the syndication upfront is moving, with a few deals close to being completed. Last year, syndication brought in $3.1 billion. The kids’ market brought in about $900 million last year. A few deals in the kids’ upfront are expected to be signed next week.
Still, cable is currently the main focus and is expected to remain so until the networks are finished writing business.
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