- Kudos to CBS and “NCIS,” which tonight will air its 200th episode. The Navy/legal drama debuted in 2003, with actor Mark Harmon at the helm, who was best known for his work on NBC’s “St. Elsewhere,” and as a hunk-for-hire on such shows as “The West Wing.” “NCIS” has defied the approaching-a-decade malaise, delivering an average 22.7 million viewers for new episodes this season. 100 episodes is industry standard to reach syndication level. The record number of episodes in history television belongs to “Gunsmoke,” which ran for 20 seasons and 635 episodes.
- Super Bowl XLVI attracted a record 111.3 million total viewers, reports Media Life, to become the most-watched broadcast in television history. This is the third year running that the Super Bowl has set the record, held until 2010 by the series finale of "M*A*S*H" in 1983. It was also the highest-rated Super Bowl in 26 years, with an average 47.0 household rating and 71 share. The game took a 40.5 share among adults 18-49.
- The post-Super Bowl Season 2 premiere of “The Voice” on NBC took a 16.3 rating adult 18-49 rating, and 37.61 million viewers, reports TVByTheNumbers. This was NBC’s best rating for an entertainment telecast since the “Friends” finale in 2004, with a 24.9 share.
- The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has ruled that NBC’s WMAQ-TV Chicago had a right to deny long-shot GOP presidential candidate Randall Terry a Super Bowl ad spot, reports Broadcasting & Cable. FCC ruled that while broadcasters must make ad time available to qualified candidates, WMAQ judged fairly that Terry was unqualified, given his showing at the polls. The ad reportedly contained graphic images of aborted fetuses, which Terry believed was behind the denial.
- Univision and Disney are in talks for a Latino-oriented 24-hour cable news channel, in English. As TVNewsCheck reports, neither company will confirm or discuss the project, but are likely to launch the channel in time for the November presidential election. The 2010 census revealed that U.S. born Latinos comprise nearly 60% of the growth among U.S. Hispanics over the last decade, and that an increasing number speak English as a first language.
Upfront TV: “Sons of Anarchy” Renewed | NBC Dooms “The Firm” | 20/20 Dominates 18-49
- Before Season 5 even airs, FX has renewed its biker drama “Sons of Anarchy” for a sixth season, reports TVByTheNumbers, and creator Kurt Sutter has been signed to a new three-year deal. “Sons of Anarchy” is expected to return in October of this year. The Season 4 premiere, which aired September 6 of 2011, was the most-watched program in FX history, with 6.5 million viewers.
- NBC has “effectively cancelled” the lawyer-in-trouble drama “The Firm,” reports Broadcasting & Cable. NBC has moved the series to the Saturdays 9 p.m. slot to “burn off” its remaining original episodes. “The Firm” was on Thursdays at 10 p.m. (a slot held for more than a decade by “E.R.”). NBC will premiere its new drama “Awake” beginning March 1, with repeats of “Grimm” running in the slot until then. “The Firm” drew a meager 0.8 rating with adults 18-49 in last Thursday’s airing.
- ABC finished #1 on Friday among adults 18-49; the network crowed in a press release that “it was the Net’s 4th straight Friday to deliver the #1 position against its network rivals.” ABC’s 20/20 took the night’s #1 position among that key young-adult demographic. Perhaps it was the subject matter: 20/20 featured an in-depth look at marriage and divorce, Hollywood style.
- More signs of struggle at the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN); “The Rosie Show” shed more staffers last week, to a total of 30 employees and contractors, and has moved taping to a smaller studio. As Crain’s Chicago Business describes, host O’Donnell is trying to “find the right formula to boost ratings,” which now average only 200,000 viewers, as opposed to its premier at 500,000. The show has done away with some fun-based elements like a game show segment, in favor of one-on-one interviews.
Upfront TV: Viacom Blames Nielsen & Nickelodeon | GM Cancels Half its Ads | “Beverly Hills Nannies”
- Viacom’s fourth-quarter cable unit ad revenue dropped 3%, reports Multichannel News, and Viacom is blaming Nielsen. Its kid-oriented Nickelodeon Channel has been on a double-digit decline since September. Viacom claims Nielsen’s measurements are inaccurate, and presented its own set-top-box data that shows steady ratings. Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman claims that without the drop-off at Nickelodeon—toymakers weren’t about to advertise for Christmas on a sinking network—Viacom’s ad revenues would have been up for Q4.
- General Motors (GM) has cancelled almost half of its Q2 upfront buys in broadcast and cable, reports Adweek, the maximum allowable under standard network contracts. GM did the same in 2009, when cancelations ran around 15%. Procter & Gamble similarly pulled out of half its commitments that year. This may not be a sign of ill health for the #1 U.S., than a sign of streamlining. GM recently consolidated its global media buying and planning account with Carat, cutting loose several regional agencies.
- NBC will use ultra-slow-motion cameras in Sunday’s Super Bowl broadcast, reports Broadcasting & Cable. The Hi-Motion II cameras from NAC Image Technology allows for ultra-high-quality images (usually sacrificed in slo-mo), but at a 10X reduction in speed. 2X is more typical.
- ABC Family has ordered a new reality series, “Bevery Hills Nannies,” reports Entertainment Weekly. This docu-series will follow nannies who work in the 90210 area code. “Nannies” is produced by Evolution Media who are behind the “Real Housewives” Beverly Hills and Orange County franchises. ABC Family is home of “The Secret Life of the American Teenager,” and racier shows like “Pretty Little Liars.” Time will tell if “Nannies” will approach the violence and hijinx typical of the “Housewives” properties.
- While the wound does not appear fatal, “American Idol” continues to bleed. “Idol” on Wednesday drew a 5.9 rating among adults 18-49, reports TVByTheNumbers. That is down 9% from a 6.5 rating the prior Wednesday, and 34% from its third Wednesday telecast in 2011.
8% Rise in Network Primetime CPMs, Analyst Predicts
Pivotal Research Group, a New York-based equity research firm, is projecting 8% in cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM) in network primetime. Analyst Brian Wieser expects this to be a boon for those broadcasters. RBR.com quoted Wieser as saying he expects “These seemingly favorable price increases to positively impact sentiment around ad-supported media stocks including CBS, Comcast, Walt Disney and News Corp.” Cable networks (including Time Warner, Discovery and AMC) will likely enjoy a “halo” effect.
In last year’s upfront market, broadcasters ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC saw CPM prices increase by 9% reported paidContent, while cable networks jumped 12%. So this is good, and perhaps unexpected news for the networks. If Internet video has reached a tipping point (with announcements like original content from Netflix and Hulu), it “doesn’t appear to be coming at the expense of traditional TV,” suggests paidContent.
While that 8% is a very educated guess, it is an imprecise one; advertisers may surprise the networks at the negotiating table—chiefly by not showing up, or by putting their ad dollars online. In a worst-case scenario Wieser believes that the rise could be as low as 5%.
Upfront TV: Fox Leads Again | Sports TV Ads Strong | Amanpour’s Double Duty | Lingerie Bowl IX
- Fox News continues its lead in news viewership, handily pulling in the most viewers for its coverage of Tuesday’s Florida Republican primary. As Broadcasting & Cable reports, the channel averaged 2.5 million total viewers from 8-11pm EST. CNN took second place with 1.09 million total viewers, and MSNBC third with 984,000. FNC also led among the adults 25-54 demographic, with 641,000 viewers to CNN’s 402,000 and MSNBC’s 245,000.
- Ratings took a sudden drop at ABC/Disney’s “Live! With Kelly.” For the week ending January 22, rating dropped 10% from the same week a year earlier, to a 2.7 household rating from a 3.0. “Was it the weak line-up of cohosts for the week?” asked Hollywood Reporter. Guest hosts included Seth Meyers, Mario Lopez and long-ago “Saturday Night Live” comic Dana Carvey. Disney countered that it was that long-time host Regis Philbin had announced he was leaving the show, that same week in 2010, so the weeks were not comparable.
- Sports TV advertising rose 5.9% in 2011, reports Media Life, to about $11 billion—about four times the pace of the overall media economy. One possible reason: consumers seeking lower-cost entertainment will stay home and watch the cable TV they pay for, rather than spend $10 a ticket to go to the movies.
- Veteran journalist Christiane Amanpour will return to CNN Worldwide with her signature show “Amanpour,” spearheading a new CNN International lineup, the network announced. This in addition to her duties as global affairs anchor for ABC News. How she will manage a daily show on CNN, while globetrotting for ABC, neither network has confirmed.
- The Lingerie Football League (LFL) will broadcast its Lingerie Bowl IX at 4pm EST. With the Super Bowl kickoff at about 6:30, sports fans can enjoy both, broadcaster MTV2 enthuses. The Philadelphia Passion and Los Angeles Temptation will play at Las Vegas’ Orleans Arena. With five expansion markets in 2011, and LFL Canada, Australia and Europe in the works, LFL claims to be the U.S.’s fastest-growing pro sports league with sell-out crowds and, of course, record internet traffic. No word yet on advertisers, but past supporters of LFL have included Hard Rock Café, Rawlings and Sony.
Upfront TV: ABC Orders Dramas | HBO Renews “Luck” | Hoboken Bans “Shore” | “Bang” Beats “Idol”
- ABC has ordered four hour-long drama pilots for the coming season, reports Deadline Hollywood. Marc Cherry’s “Devious Maids” is based on a Mexican telenovela. Cherry is behind “Desperate Housewives.” Michael Green’s “Gotham” is a cop drama about finding a magic parallel universe in NYC. In “Zero Hour,” conspiracy theories come true. And ABC Studios’ “Penoza” has a wife taking over a crime syndicate from her assassinated husband.
- HBO has renewed “Luck,” its horse-track drama starring Dustin Hoffman, just two days after its Sunday premier. The premier drew 1.1 million viewers, and another 711,000 for its 10pm reairing, and 420,000 for its 11pm reairing. The Season 2 order is for 10 episodes. One of the drama’s executive producers is David Milch of “Deadwood” fame
- Kia and Starbucks have signed on as official sponsors of NBC’s “The Voice” in Season 2, alongside Sprint, reports Broadcasting & Cable. All three sponsors will be featured during the season premier on Sunday following Super Bowl XLVI. Sprint will sponsor social media around the premier, including a streaming commentary by correspondent Christina Milian.
- The city of Hoboken, NJ has denied “Jersey Shore” entrance, reports The Wrap. 495 Productions wants to shoot a spinoff in Hoboken, but was denied by the The Hoboken Film Commission. The Commission did not cite bad taste among its reasons; rather, the 24-hour filming permit would violate the city’s regulation against filming past 11pm in residential areas. And the unstructured production style would provide no site control, said Hoboken’s chief of police.
- “The geeks have bragging rights over the superstar strivers,” says an Associated Press news story. CBS’s half-hour comedy “The Big Bang Theory” drew a slightly larger audience than Fox's “American Idol”, by 16.13 million viewers to 15.56. A slight lead, “But significant,” opines TVNewsCheck. “Bang” is the first scripted series to beat “Idol” in head-to-head competition.
Upfront TV: Clear Channel Buys Seacrest | Priceline’s Motive for Murder | X Factor Axings
- Clear Channel will today announce its acquisition of a minority stake in Ryan Seacrest Productions. As the New York Times reports, this cements an already tight bond, as Seacrest, is a host, producer and spokesman for Clear Channel. No word yet as to the sum of Clear Channel’s investment in Seacrest, but he is expected to produce scripted and unscripted TV shows and other content. . Ryan Seacrest Productions currently produces “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” for E! and is producing new reality shows for Bravo and CMT.
- Why did Priceline.com kill off William Shatner and its “Priceline Negotiator” after 14 years? Priceline.com says launched the ad because the company is moving toward fixed-price discounts, whereas Shatner and the Negotiator had become to heavily identified with negotiating a price, reports Yahoo Finance.
- Former New York governor and CNN anchor Eliot Spizer will host “Countdown” this week, covering for an ailing Keith Olbermann, reports TVNewser. Spitzer will co-host “Countdown” with Bill Press for tonight’s Florida primary coverage. This will be Spitzer’s first hosting job since he left CNN in July, 2011. TVNewser speculates that this is a test-drive for a more permanent gig. Interestingly, CurrentTV took out a full-page ad in yesterday’s New York Times promoting its political coverage, with pictures of hosts Cenk Uygur and Jennifer Granholm—sams Olbermann, with whom the network has had fractious relations.
- Simon Cowell has canned “The X Factor” judges Nicole Scherzinger and Paula Abdul as well as host Steve Jones, reports New York Daily News. Cowell produces the performance competition show for The Fox Network, and is purportedly miffed over lower-than-expected ratings. No word yet as to replacements, though Mariah Carey is a likely candidate; Cowell supposedly wanted Carey as a judge in Season One, but declined as she was pregnant at the time.
Upfront TV : CNN Patents Magic | Lowe’s Leaves “Muslims” | SAG Award Champions | “Office” To Return
- CNN wants to trademark its “Magic Wall,” the interactive touch screen that it introduced during the 2008 primaries. As TVNewser reports, the multi-touch display is now used by practically ever television news outlet and in sports broadcasting. ABC, ESPN and CNBC can keep their magic walls, they just can’t call them magic walls.
- Lowe’s has joined the list of advertisers jumping ship from TLC’s “All-American Muslim.” This after pressure from groups like the Florida Family Association which labeled the show "propaganda" that presents a "clear and present danger to American liberties and traditional values." The show follows five Muslim families living in Dearborn, Michigan, and has become a “lightning rod,” as Lowe’s described it in a statement on Facebook. Despite the company’s “commitment to diversity and inclusion,” it called itself “sincerely sorry…we’ve managed to make some people very unhappy.”
- Rumors abound of a spinoff to “The Office,” with Dwight as the central character. But “The Office” is certain to be renewed rather than replaced. The TVByTheNumbers “Bubble Watch “ predicts that all of NBC’s comedies, even the lagging “Community,” will be renewed in 2012.
- HBO led the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday night, taking five out of nine TV awards. “Boardwalk Empire” won for outstanding ensemble in a drama series, and lead actor Steve Buscemi for outstanding male actor in a drama series. Broadcast TV took only two awards—“Modern Family” (ABC) for outstanding ensemble in a comedy series, and Alec Baldwin (again) for outstanding male actor in a comedy series.
Device’s Screen Size May Determine Conversion Likelihood
While search advertisers experience higher click-through-rates for mobile phone and tablet search campaigns than for desktop search campaigns (at 166% and 137% respectively) according to a November 2011 report from Macquarie Group, those clicks are less likely to convert to sales in a direct relationship to screen size. The report employed Efficient Frontier advertiser data. Efficient Frontier found that mobile conversion rates were at just 31% of the average desktop campaign’s, while tablet conversion rates were much more on par (96%). Meanwhile, the average cost-per-click (CPC) on mobile phone search campaigns was slightly higher (108%) than for desktop search campaigns, although CPCs for tablet campaigns were on average 85% of desktop search campaign CPCs.
Upfronts: NBCU Sees Some Increases Over 25% | AT&T, Verizon Also Looking at Hulu
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Discovery Communications, Viacom’s MTV Networks, Time Warner’s Turner Entertainment, and News Corp.’s FX Networks all reported at least one property that increased volume by as much as 20 percent, but it appears that NBC Universal’s cable networks are looking at the biggest year-over-year increases, writes Ad Week. “For our overall portfolio of cable networks, we saw huge volume increases, over 25 percent. And demand for USA Network and Bravo generated some of the highest price increases in the marketplace,” said Dave Cassaro, president of cable advertising sales, NBCU Cable.
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ABC Family has renewed its original comedy Melissa & Joey for a second season, the network announced today. The series starring Melissa Joan Hart and Joey Lawrence will return for its second season in 2012. The sitcom launched in summer 2010 and has scored well for the network in key demos, including adults 18-34 and women 18-49. It airs in a Wednesday comedy block alongside State of Georgia, Deadline Hollywood said.
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When streaming video was new, Netflix was able to secure contracts with the likes of Warner Bros. Studios and MTV to license big TV and film catalogues for about $5 million to $10 million per year. This time around, writes CNN Money, those costs could increase more than tenfold. However, the company has the money and motivation to spend more to keep its rapidly growing subscriber base happy.
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ISPs are also taking a look at acquiring Hulu, including AT&T and Verizon and; AT&T already runs a video portal that's quite similar to Hulu. Hulu's problem has been its cable owners have done their best to ensure that Hulu doesn't really threaten traditional TV, something that wouldn't change under Verizon and AT&T -- who wouldn't want it competing with FiOS TV and U-Verse TV, respectively. One company that isn't interested in Hulu is Netflix, and Hulu isn't interested in selling to Netflix either, writes DSL Report.