cable - alisa perren on Diigo

22 Dec 09

04 Dec 09

Comcast-NBCU: Reaction Across The Web | paidContent

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The Real Reason Brian Roberts Is Buying NBC

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CHART OF THE DAY: The "Wow Slide" That Explains The Comcast-NBCU Deal (GE, CMCSA)

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NBCU comcast cable cash flow

29 Nov 09

'Oprah' exit may weaken daytime talk shows -- latimes.com

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Oprah broadcast cable business models syndication

Oprah Winfrey's exit from daytime TV will mean more than just a studio scuffle for the time slot she mined for gold for TV stations. It also likely signals, many experts say, the beginning of an inexorable decline for the daytime syndicated talk show, which has occupied a central spot in mainstream culture ever since "The Phil Donahue Show" rolled out nationwide nearly 40 years ago.
But in recent years, "Oprah" has been subject to the same downdrafts affecting the rest of broadcast TV. Her show has been grappling with tumbling ratings as cable outlets and DVRs have lured away viewers. TV stations, hit by sharp ad declines, are no longer able to fork over the hefty licensing fees that helped make Winfrey a billionaire. Viewers have gotten into the habit of grabbing news and video off the Internet, with less reliance on traditional broadcasters.
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- both happen to have current agreements that are set to expire in 2011, when Winfrey will sign off.
- The TV industry will thus be looking closely at the ABC owned-and-operated stations that currently carry "Oprah," including KABC in Los Angeles. Those stations could decide to start their local newscasts early at 4 p.m., which would likely deliver an immediate tonic to the bottom line because there would be no more licensing fees to pay to an outside distributor and there would be more local ad time to sell. According to Bill Carroll, an analyst at New York-based Katz Media, other stations would likely follow whatever the ABC-owned stations do.
- "What TV stations are trying to do now is take less risk and somehow improve their margins," said Derek Baine, a TV analyst at SNL Kagan. "I don't know if they're going to pony up for a big license-fee type show like 'Oprah.' "

28 Nov 09

Even As It Sets New Usage Highs, Is Hulu Headed Towards Irrelevancy? - TV Ratings, Nielsen Ratings, Television Show Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.com

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24 Nov 09

The Future of Broadcast TV’s Unsteady as Cable Strengthens

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The Media Equation - Oprah Winfrey’s Success Owes to Decisions That Avoided Common Traps - NYTimes.com

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(Forbes estimated her net worth at over $2.3 billion)

22 Nov 09

A Business Model For TV Everywhere | paidContent

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TV Everywhere business models distribution cable content

TVNewsCheck - Oprah Underscores Importance Of Retrans

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broadcasting cable oprah retransmission

As broadcasters watch Oprah share her plans with viewers — giving her stations yet another big ratings boost, no doubt — they should be thinking about what they need to do to stop the migration of their best programming to cable and what they need to do to get some new best programming.
When I think about it, I come up with only one answer: retransmission consent revenue. Way more of it. A couple of weeks ago, I said the rallying cry for TV stations in 2010 should be "A Buck a Sub." By that, I mean that in every new retrans deal, TV stations ought to settle for nothing less than $1 per subscriber per month.
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- That's the number Rupert Murdoch wants for his Fox stations. Why should any affiliate settle for less?
- It's nice to think that the money broadcasters need for programming will come from a rebound in advertising or the planned expansion into mobile DTV. But I wouldn't count on it.
- The full weight of broadcasting's predicament did not hit me until last year at this time when ESPN outbid Fox for the major college bowls, including the national championship game, and then took the Rose Bowl away from ABC.
- Coincidentally, the bowl games go to cable for the first time in 2011, the same year as Oprah. It seems that the Mayan calendar for the broadcasting apocalypse is off by a year.
- What's happened to off-net sitcoms is also telling. Before TV stations get a shot at airing them, they must wait a year while they get a weekly airing on some cable network. And then, when the broadcasters do get to strip them, they must do it at the same time a cable network is.
- None of these moves, in and of themselves, are fatal. But they add up and they are causing the gap between broadcasting and cable to close — viewer by viewer.
- Retrans helps in two ways. Not only does it give broadcasters more money to spend on programming in the form of syndication license fees and reverse comp, but it also takes away money from cable network rivals that have been nibbling broadcasters to death for the past 30 years.
- Let's do the math on a dollar a sub. A buck times 12 months times 100 million cable and satellite subs is $1.2 billion per year for the O&Os and affiliates of each network. Times that by four networks, and you have transferred $4.8 billion from cable to broadcast.

20 Nov 09

Jeff Zucker: 'Quality content wins out' --The Live Feed | THR

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Jeff Zucker NBC Universal cable Comcast

"They're looking at the value of content," and the strength of
NBCU's assets, including the growth of the company's cable
networks, Zucker argued. "Today NBC Universal is a vastly different
company" than when NBC was founded, with more than 2/3s of the
company today having nothing to do with either NBC or Universal. He
reiterated that 75% of profits come from the core cable networks,
which Zucker said is still not widely understood.
Discussing Leno, Zucker said he felt it was "unfortunate" that some
of his previous comments on the production cost efficiency of
Leno's talk show made it seem like NBCU is more focused on making
money than on producing memorable TV. Instead, he argued his team
wants to do "whatever it takes to put on the best
television."
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- Asked about the network affiliate system, Zucker said: "We don't
  want to throw it out. We think it still works incredibly well,"
  even though the economics need to be fixed. "We shouldn't diminish
  that" and underestimate its power.
- "We can't look at this as a TV station anymore," suggesting that
  companies must instead look at the broader local media space as an
  opportunity. Plus, cost measures have been key.
- Asked about a push by CBS and Fox to get retransmission fees from
  distributors, Zucker said the market seems to be increasingly
  moving into that direction. "We would expect to play in that, and
  that would be very advantageous," he said. Asked how long this
  shift in business models will take to play out, he suggested three
  to four years.

15 Nov 09

Here's Why Hulu Has To Charge (NWS)

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dual revenue streams Hulu broadcast cable film 4800

In the last quarter, News Corp. had operating income in its television (broadcast) division drop to $38 million from $83 million the year prior. Meanwhile its cable network programming had operating income of $495 million, up from $350 million a year ago.
The desparity is thanks in part to affiliate fees which kick up year after year.

Not having affiliate fees to back broadcast ad revenues "is like fighting with one hand tied behind your back," says Carey.

A pet project of former News Corp. President Peter Chernin, Fox Television Studios was formed to develop new approaches to making and financing network-level shows for cable TV.
Now Fox Television Studios, producer of hit dramas "Burn Notice" and "White Collar" for USA Network, is evolving into what could become the new model for network TV production that other studios are closely watching.
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- When it comes to making scripted dramas, Fox Television Studios has hit the reset button: Actors and writers are paid less, 11-day production schedules have been crammed into seven days, and costly digital effects are often replaced by old-fashioned stunts.
- Fox Television Studio's strategy, on the other hand, is to co-produce shows with international partners willing to commit to a series right from the start -- bypassing the expensive and uncertain pilot process -- and sell the completed shows to a U.S. network. A similar model has been used to finance production of independent films before they find a distributor.
- Last summer, for example, Fox Television Studios was able to sell 13 episodes each of the dramas "Mental" and "Defying Gravity" to Fox and ABC, respectively, with backing from several international partners.
  
  The advantage to a network is that the fee they would pay for a show is dramatically lower than the $1.5 million to $2 million per episode that has become the industry benchmark.
- "Everybody is clamoring for change, we had to act," said the Argentine-born Calemzuk, who cut his teeth in the television business by programming cable and satellite networks in Latin America. "This idea was born out of necessity."
- So far, Calemzuk's track record is mixed. Neither "Mental" nor "Defying Gravity" survived past their initial summer run, and no amount of creative financing can transform a show on the bubble into a hit. From a financial standpoint, however, it wasn't a disaster since both shows were fully protected.
  
  "At worst you come out break-even as opposed to losing $10 million," he said.
- Also, although 13 episodes is not nearly enough for reruns or DVD sales in the U.S., it is nonetheless a sufficient number for reruns in overseas markets. Another Fox Television Studios show, "Persons Unknown," is waiting to go on NBC and is expected to premiere next year.
- Calemzuk has learned a few lessons from his early experiences with "Mental" and "Defying Gravity." If the networks are not involved in a show from the beginning, the program can fall through the cracks when it comes to marketing and promotion.
- That test will come with "The Gates," a police drama set inside a suburban gated community for ABC, and "Jack and Dan," a quirky cop show about mismatched partners, for Fox. This time both networks have been much more involved in the shows from the inception, and Fox Television Studios is arranging foreign partners, skipping the pilot process and making 13 episodes right off the bat.
- Saving money on production isn't Calemzuk's only goal. Besides moving off the Fox lot, one of the other things he did when he came aboard was slash the staff by 40%.
  
  "It's a guerrilla type of operation," he said.
- The job cuts and recent successes have boosted profit: The studio, which is a tiny operation at News Corp., is expected to earn around $20 million this year.

06 Nov 09

CBS Retrans Fees Expected to Double in 2010

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affiliates network retransmission distribution cable

On the earnings call, CBS also said it would realign its businesses into five distinct segments; an entertainment unit that includes TV, production, distribution, CBS Films and CBS Interactive; a cable networks unit that houses Showtime and CBS College Sports; a Publishing group and a Local Group embracing local TV, radio and outdoor businesses.
Scatter pricing is running 25% above upfront levels when the network took prices down a point or two. Scatter dollars pacing is up 100% over year ago levels, said Moonves, who took the opportunity to point out that some ad agencies had said they were sorry their clients hadn’t listened to them and spent more in the cheaper May upfront market. Moonves said the network is now replacing many show promos with advertising avails in order to accommodate demand.

26 Oct 09

CTAM Summit 2009: Comcast's Burke Tells TV Biz To Help Stop Cord Cutting

www.broadcastingcable.com/..._To_Help_Stop_Cord_Cutting.php - Preview

addressability cord cutting television cable Comcast

Desmond said addressability, the kind being prepared by the
cable industry's Canoe Ventures and others, would help advertisers minimize
waste. She suggested that around 40% to 50% of a typical primetime ad buy was
wasted on viewers not interested in the product or service or outside of the
advertisers' target. However, she viewed it unlikely that addressability -
targeted advertising to subsets of consumers - would happen within the next two
years

25 Oct 09

FX grows into sizable Fox sibling

www.variety.com/...VR1118010335.html - Preview

Fox FX cable television branding

For years, FX had been focused on becoming "the HBO of basic cable," as its execs have often stated. Yet these days, the cabler is starting to challenge even its Fox broadcast sibling for prominence and profit-making for News Corp.
FX is poised for a growth spurt during the next year as it adds three dramas and three comedies to its sked, with the goal of reaching 11 original primetime skeins in 2011. John Landgraf, FX prexy and g.m., and his team have had a remarkable run, giving series pickups to six out of six pilots produced this year.
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- primetime's No. 5 cabler in adults 18-49,
- According to industry research firm SNL Kagan, FX's operating revenue is estimated at $812 million this year, and it's expected to climb to $892 million in 2011. In two years, FX's subscriber base is expected to top 100 million home
- which will result in the cabler airing roughly the same number of scripted hours next year as big brother Fox.
- The success of the edgy original programming strategy forged with the dawn of "The Shield" in 2002 has driven FX's growth and made the cabler a major profit center for News Corp.
- Landgraf is ready to gamble with the tonal qualities of the new crop.
- The pilots FX does produce are done at bargain prices. Upcoming laffer "Louie," starring Louis C.K., cost approximately $250,000, well below the typical broadcast budget of $800,000.
- Due to the adult nature of its shows, FX airs all of its original skeins at 10 p.m. That might have to change down the road due to an overflowing pipeline, but the timeslot has worked well -- especially this year, as NBC's shift to "The Jay Leno Show" has resulted in less drama competish.
  FX's plan is to stick with Tuesday and Wednesday as drama nights, while "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" and "The League," and presumable "Archer" and "Louie," to play on Thursday.
- see us as the premium brand of basic cable."

24 Oct 09

Campaign From USA Network to Add ‘White Collar’ to Lineup

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USA Network branding marketing television cable

10 Oct 09

With 'Southland' Axed, NBC's Depressing Surrender Is Almost Complete

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Southland broadcast NBC television cable business models

alisa perren's Library tagged cable → View Popular

Apple May Be On The Verge Of Kneecapping The Cable Industry. Finally.

Comcast-NBCU: Reaction Across The Web | paidContent

The Real Reason Brian Roberts Is Buying NBC

CHART OF THE DAY: The "Wow Slide" That Explains The Comcast-NBCU Deal (GE, CMCSA)

'Oprah' exit may weaken daytime talk shows -- latimes.com

Even As It Sets New Usage Highs, Is Hulu Headed Towards Irrelevancy? - TV Ratings, Nielsen Ratings, Television Show Ratings | TVbytheNumbers.com

The Future of Broadcast TV’s Unsteady as Cable Strengthens

The Media Equation - Oprah Winfrey’s Success Owes to Decisions That Avoided Common Traps - NYTimes.com

A Business Model For TV Everywhere | paidContent

TVNewsCheck - Oprah Underscores Importance Of Retrans

Jeff Zucker: 'Quality content wins out' --The Live Feed | THR

Here's Why Hulu Has To Charge (NWS)

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Fox Television Studios' prudence is a show in itself -- latimes.com

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FX grows into sizable Fox sibling

Campaign From USA Network to Add ‘White Collar’ to Lineup

With 'Southland' Axed, NBC's Depressing Surrender Is Almost Complete

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