According to The New York Times, Discovery Communications, the cable channel operator, plans to start a 24-hour channel focused on eco-friendly living, as part of a push into the rising environmental movement. The company, based in Silver Spring, Md., will next year rebrand its Discovery Home Channel with a name that has not been selected but will reflect its position as the centerpiece of an initiative called …
The Proliferation of Niche Programming On TV May Not Be Sustainable
Bruce Springsteen once grumbled about having 57 TV channels, with "nothin' on." Now, the average American has nearly double that. The typical American home received 104 television channels in 2006, Nielsen Media Research said, up from 61 in 2000. In 1990, the typical number of channels was 33. Last year, viewers watched only 15 percent of the stations available to them for any appreciable length of time; in 2000, …
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Content Droplets
I like Scott Karp's take on disaggregation: All the focus on the digitization and online distribution of music — and now video — has been on piracy. But what if that’s just a red herring? You could argue that the most striking consequence of digitizing media and distributing it online is that all content is now available in a discrete, granual form. Music file. Article page. Video clip. Podcast. Photo. There are very …
In Search of the Uncommercial
Stuart Elliott reports that TV execs are exploring changes in the way they deliver commercials in attempt to better hold viewers' attention throughout the program. At a meeting scheduled for today in Burbank, Calif., ABC, part of the Walt Disney Company, will show several ideas to executives from media agencies gathered for the network’s annual spring development meeting. The meeting offers ABC a chance to share …
Polling Ad Execs on Emerging Media
"Blogs, like podcasting and virtual worlds such as Second Life, offer a passionate niche audience. At the same time, they typically are not suited for repurposed content, and require special attention from marketers to work well as part of a campaign. This is partly why blogs are not considered very effective by most US advertising executives, according to the American Advertising Federation." [SOURCE: eMarketer] …
Microsoft Will Shift $1 Billion To Digital
By 2010, Microsoft will shift most of its $1 billion in U.S. ad spend to digital formats, according to senior VP Mich Mathews. Traditional media will play a role, but the goal will be to involve consumers in the brand. From MediaDailyNews: That [involvement] mantra has become so critical that it's taken into consideration when creating TV spots and other video ads. Providing content that consumers can take ownership …
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When Paradigms Collapse…
After letting 250 employees go last week, The New York Times looks at MTV Network's attempts to adapt to the modern media marketplace. MTV has been madly programming screens of all sizes and looking to engage consumers on whatever device they choose, but it has been slow going. Rising above the clutter was a lot easier when we were all staring into the same campfire. “It’s true that our viewers are telling us that …
Wanted: Creatives Who Understand The Internet
If you're a big time TV creative at W&K and you make $500K directing Super Bowl spots, stay where you are. People like you may be working a dying business model, but you've got a long way to fall from your ivory tower-like perch. For the rest of us, "new" media, such as the Internet, continues to evolve and gain traction. Check out these stats from market research and advisory company Outsell (courtesy of …
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