TCA; NBC Will Stick with Infront
Network to forgo traditional May upfront presentation, present lineup to advertisers in April.
By Marisa Guthrie -- Broadcasting & Cable, 7/21/2008 1:04:00 PM
Beverly Hills -- NBC will forgo the traditional May upfront presentation again next year and instead present its lineup to advertisers in April.
NBC executives dubbed that event an “infront,” stressing that it was an attempt to have more meaningful conversations with individual advertisers and develop long-term integrated marketing partnerships.
But old business models are slow to evolve and, while the network is developing new research models to measure consumer involvement beyond mere ratings points, negotiations with advertisers will still take place on traditional cost-per-thousand-homes (CPM) metrics.
“There are still guarantees. We’re still negotiating based on CPM. It follows the pattern,. It’s slowly evolving,” said Ben Silverman, co-chairman of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, during a Q&A session with the media at the Television Critics Association press tour here Monday.
NBC has traditionally presented its fall schedule to advertisers on the first day of the upfront week, which takes place in New York in mid-May. Next year, Fox will present Monday, while NBC is likely to present its “infront” in April.
The company is still weighing whether to also stick with the “NBC Experience,” said Marc Graboff, co-chairman of NBC Entertainment. The multimedia tour of NBC Universal’s broadcast and cable properties staged at Rockefeller Center during upfront week in May received mixed reviews from advertisers.
For the latest news and video from the TCA press tour, click here.
