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Cynopsis: Weekender 01/25/07 Good afternoon. It's Thursday, January 25, 2007, and this is your Cynopsis: Weekender edition. Below are a handful of industry stories - with which you may agree or disagree. If you'd like to be heard - put together your own 350 word submission! Details below. Broadcast and Cable in a Goal Line Stand by Dave Zornow The stakes are big and both sides have been gearing up for this battle for months. And in a few weeks, the months of strategizing, practicing and performing under pressure will be put to a test. It's not Chicago vs. Indianapolis in Miami but Sinclair vs. Mediacom in Nashville, Des Moines, Madison and Milwaukee. These are some of the other DMAs where Sinclair has dropped its stations from Mediacom's cable systems. Janice Finkel-Greene predicts it will be all over by Feb 1 - if not sooner. "They can't do this during a sweep - there's just too much to lose," says Finkel-Greene, EVP/Local Broadcast Strategy at Initiative. Greene says Sinclair has strategically picked this fight to occur before the February sweeps in markets without electronic measurement or where Mediacom doesn't have enough subscribers to impact overnight ratings. She says the repercussions of continuing this fight in a sweep month would be far greater. According to agencies, Sinclair is offering discounts of 30-40% during the blackout to make up for the lost coverage. "We are reducing our rating estimates by the potential loss of coverage," says Finkel-Greene. Both teams in this contest have a well-balanced offense and a strong defense. Sinclair has been offering Mediacom subs $100 to switch to DirecTV; Mediacom has been distributing free retro-TV rabbit ears for their Sinclair signal-less subs. The Iowa Congressional delegation has written to both parties encouraging them to submit to binding arbitration (Mediacom said yes, Sinclair said no). It's a battle of two entrenched competitors staged far away from the New York and Los Angeles media spotlight with implications for broadcasters, cable MSOs and consumers everywhere. Despite consumers' frustrations, it remains to be seen how many are devoted enough to Sinclair stations to switch to DirecTV for their favorite shows, many of which may also be available on other channels, too. Although Sinclair may have picked the right time and the right places to confront cable, it may backfire over the long term if consumers find they can live without Sinclair's signals and end up changing their TV viewing habits to make due with the programming on the hundreds of other channels still available on their cable systems. The CW Embraces New Media ... Finally! By Karen Woodward "Momentum" was the watchword at The CW's winter press tour last Friday, January 19. And none too soon. For a network "committed to being for young viewers in every way, shape, or form," it has taken The CW way too long to embrace new media. But it's making up for that with innovative mobile applications and by finally establishing an online presence. "The CW is delivering on its promise to deliver original, new content to our young audience via multiple platforms," said Rick Haskins, EVP/Marketing and Brand Strategy for The CW. In December, CBS Interactive (CBS and The CW) and Hong Kong-based Artificial Life, Inc. launched the first avatar-based mobile game tied to a major TV show for America's Next Top Model. To play, users select a virtual representation (an avatar) of their favorite and least favorite model to live on their mobile phone, and then interact with the avatars as if they were real participants of the TV show. January 18th marked the launch of a six episode short form animated series "Smallville Legends: The Oliver Queen Chronicles." Along with Warner Bros Television Group, The CW teamed with Sprint TV mobile video service, which has first dibs on airing the series, which will then be available for streaming at CWTV.com. That's right: The CW can finally be watched online. Full episodes of Veronica Mars, One Tree Hill, Supernatural, Beauty and the Geek, and the Monday comedy block will be streamed for free on CWTV.com the day after airing. CW online aims to be even more progressive than its network counterparts: the "Tear Away" feature enables viewers to drag and drop a video player from the website directly to their desktop, making it that much easier to watch on their computer. These are definitely impressive strides for The CW, but what took so long? "We were focusing on launching the network," explains Dawn Ostroff, President of Entertainment, pointing out they had approximately eight months to merge two networks into one. She assures the network is now focused on new media agendas targeted to the 18-34 year old audience. Haskins concurs: "As the network of tech-savvy adults, our goal is to provide our audience with a community where they can connect with their favorite CW shows." It's about time. Gen X'rs Don't Play By The Rules By Wayne Karrfalt NATPE was chocked full of panels last week about how new media is poised to redefine television. These trends frighten the old guard, to be sure, but nothing is scarier to seasoned veterans than the demo that is utilizing these new outlets most effectively. Why? Because young people don't follow the rules and clearly don't seem to need traditional media as much as traditional media needs them. A panel dubbed "Getting To Know Gen X - Next" invited high-profile names from the blogosphere and world of user-generated content to share some insights about where all this is going. Twenty-seven-year-old video blogger Ryanne Hodson explained how she has created her own brand on the web. Though not as famous as former Rocketboom anchor Amanda Congdon, Hodson makes a living by contributing to green journalism sites, teaching blog techniques and speaking at conferences around the world. Making herself part of the story goes against the established rules she learned as a television producer, she said, but that is the whole point. "The cool thing about the internet is that you can break those rules," she said. "It's like the wild wild west." Some TV executives say the web is noisy and full of junk. But young people like a mix of content, said Current TV on air host Laura Ling, and quality work tends to rise to the top. Gen X has embraced randomness and Current has done away with traditional scheduling in favor of randomly aligned "pods" to reflect this reality. "You never know what you're going to get on Current. It's like setting your iPod to shuffle," said Ling. Others say sites such as YouTube and MySpace are fads that will fade when the novelty wears off. Not so, said moderator Brian Seth Hurst, CEO of The Opportunity Management Company, a new media consultancy based in Santa Monica that helps web personalities leverage their brands. User generated and social networking sites are thriving because they help people connect with each other in a way traditional push mediums can't replicate. "This is different. This is a personal medium. This is one to one," said Hurst. Ambushing The Big Event By Louis Chunovic The Big Game's coming. Will you be able to recognize an ambush when you see one on TV? That's ambush marketing we're talkin' about, pardner, and it's not just some bushwhack by a hole-in-wall gang nobody's ever heard of either. It's a recognized term of the marketer's art, and it's regularly practiced by some of the biggest brands on the planet. And that's because at big events -- such as the Super Bowl, the Olympics and the World Cup -- there are only so many "official" sponsorships and other sanctioned opportunities to go around. You know: the Official Beer of the NFL, the Official Credit Card of the Olympics, the Half-Time Show Brought To You By…. That means if Pepsi's the sanctioned soda at some big event, look for Coke to be setting up its own ambush, and vice versa. After all, what's an advertiser who's either unwilling or unable to find room inside the charmed circle to do except go, as it were, commando? But, to be sure, there are rules, policed by the brands' and the leagues' and the events' own legal sheriffs. Above all, if you're going to create an ambush ad, don't use the event's own trademark, said Benjamin Mulcahy, a partner at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton, and one of the panelists at the Ambush Marketing session at the Association of National Advertisers' Advertising Law & Business Affairs Conference, held recently in Manhattan. Remember, advertisers own rights to an event, but not to an entire sport, so, for example, during the Super Bowl it's not necessary to avoid football-themed ads, said Elizabeth N. Bilus, PepsiCo's intellectual property counsel. "Know the rights that your [big event] grantor has," said Mulcahy. And know what's not fenced in, too. For instance, game statistics are in the public domain; so are team colors; so are generic references to the sport itself or the game's location. That means that a contest offering a free trip and tickets to the Super Bowl is the province of an official sponsor. But a free trip to Miami on game day, say, along with enough cash to buy tickets to the (nudge-nudge, wink-wink) "Big Game," is smart marketing. That's why Pepsi created a series of clever spoof ads that had "Team Pepsi" soccer players taking on the likes of Sumo wrestlers and a Bavarian OomPahPah band, with nary a mention of the World Cup that was then underway in Germany. And that's why, right now, home screens are being deluged with ads that never mention the Super Bowl, but that tout things like the "Big Game Television Super Sale," promising "next day delivery in time for the Big Game." And that's how ambush marketers score. The Spokesmodel Model by Circlewipe There was a time a not so long ago when the term "spokesmodel" didn't exist in the American lexicon. Then they landed, courtesy of Star Search. Good looking boys and girls who could deliver scripted copy on camera without falling down or chapping their lips. They evolved from commercials and industrial shows. Local news operations started hiring them to do "fun features", often written, produced and edited by colleagues. In fairness, many developed broader skills, performing some or all of those functions, some even well. Some, not so much. In the last 20-25 years, a master race of spokesmodel types has proliferated. There's a farm (or communications school) somewhere that grows whole crops of them, and the television industry has more than accommodated the boom, creating places for them to live, work, and thrive. We know. We've auditioned many of them. The entertainment magazine shows cemented the type, where they deliver pre-packed stories about the lives and work of bona fide stars. But at some point, the focus changed, and it became about the anchor/correspondent/spokesmodel. Now even the correspondents' fleeting love affairs are as buzz-worthy as those of the real headliners. Pat O'Brien is at least one host aware of the trend, presenting a self-parody piece on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Tuesday night, which should be coming to a YouTube near you. As the annual awards season advances, will offer more proof. At last week's Golden Globes, a reporter proudly announced to her celebrity guest "who" she, the correspondent, was wearing and who provided her jewelry! (There's some logic there: the correspondent actually had more airtime than the guest, giving the designer and diamonds more exposure.) Beyond the entertainment magazines, a generation or so of "look-at-me" talent has infiltrated other formats throughout cable and syndication. They're all over the home improvement and how-to shows, upstaging useful information with their high-volume voices, wacky asides and poses. Chat shows aren't immune; just this month another wave arrived via NBCU's iVillage Live show and Fox's new Morning Show. The onus falls equally … no, maybe more … on those of us who hire these attractive, earnest, and basically likable folks. Producers and network executives can be enablers, who push talent to have even bigger personalities and louder voices. But to all those who strive to succeed on camera, try to resist. Tell good stories to your viewers, don't try so hard to steal the spotlight. Let your guests be the stars, let the information rule, let genuine curiosity be your guide. * WEEK'S RECAP *
SUBMISSIONS / AD SALES/ SUBSCRIBE & UNSUBSCRIBE Cynopsis Ad Sales - Mark Bohn - 203-583-1224 / Article submissions for Cynopsis: Weekender are welcome, provided they are no longer than a maximum of 350 words. News articles used are paid at the rate of $1/word. Not all submissions are used. Editorials (also 350 word max) may be submitted but are not paid, and not all are used. Send submissions to Cynopsis at . The Weekender edition is published every Thursday and includes a few items to ponder over the weekend, as well as the highlights from the week. It is delivered to the entire Cynopsis subscriber list, unless you specifically request to be unsubscribed. To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your email subscription, go to the Cynopsis website, www.cynopsis.com and click on the subscribe tab. Emails to the Editor: subject E-Mails to the Editor Copyright Cynthia Turner 2006 Later -- Cyn 01/25/07 What's On This Weekend: Saturday: 8-11p, January 27, 2007 ABC: Movie: Catch Me if You Can CBS: NCIS, Without a Trace, 48 Hours Mystery FOX: Cops, Cops, America's Most Wanted i: Movie: Cahill, United States Marshal [7], Movie: The Grifters MNT: Wicked Wicked Games [weekly recap], Watch Over Me [Weekly Recap] NBC: Dateline, Crossing Jordan, Law & Order: CI TELE: Vas o No Vas [7], Seguro Y Urgente, Concierto Clandestino UNIV: Sabado Gigante Sunday: 7-11p, January 28, 2007 ABC: AFV, EM: Home Edition, Desperate Housewives, Brothers and Sisters CBS: 60 Minutes, Cold Case, Valley of Light CW: Reba, Reba, 7th Heaven, Beauty and the Geek FOX: 'til Death, The War at Home, The Simpsons, King of the Hill [p], Family Guy, American Dad i: Kung Fu, Little Nikita, Kojak NBC: Grease: You're the One That I Want, The Apprentice LA, Crossing Jordan TELE: Cinemundo Premier, Cinemundo Premier UNIV: Llega la Fiebre de Objetivo Fama (Especial) , Bailando por la Boda de mis Sueños |
