Newspaper Earnings Continue To Drop

The outlook continues to dwindle for newspaper companies including Gannett and A.H. Belo Corporation. While Gannett announced today that their total revenue fell 8.4%, Belo gave a warning that their announcement will be "substantially below" the original forecast.

We've been talking about it now for five years and we'll continue to talk about it for another 10 before the newspaper industry completely goes down the drain.

Click here to read the full article at the NY Times.com.

Google Reports Solid Q1 Earnings

Google posted a profit of 30% in Q1 yesterday sending shares to+$85 in early Friday trading. Click here to view the article at TV Week.com

Have You Checked Out Hulu.com?

If not then you're truly missing out. Go there now.

Hulu is the video initiative formed jointly by NBC Universal and News Corp. The site features videos from SNL, Family Guy, and other hilarious programs that you can go back and watch hundreds of times over. I recently found myself wasting a half hour or so just watching various SNL clips. It's like iTunes meets YouTube, however the content is easy to find, categorized, and you don't have to pay.

You also won't be bogged down with hundreds of commercials or ads. Before each video plays you will be forced to sit through a :15 pre-roll commercial but for content like this I don't mind waiting. You will also notice that they have adopted a similiar ad unit style that YouTube is using where they have a overlay ad play on the bottom of the video screen. Ragu was sponsoring a SNL video. Interesting product placement in my mind.

Go check out Hulu.com right now and watch some videos.

General Electric To Sell NBC Universal?

Many analysts believe that is the smartest thing they could do after a dismal Q1 earnings release yesterday. The real question though is how much is NBC worth?

Click here to read the article at the NY Times.com

A la Carte Cable Causes A Stir

A la carte cable channels is a topic that has been discussed a few times over the past two years. The concept is simple, you pay for what you want. Instead of having a $75+ cable bill each month for channels that you don't use, you will pay a monthly subscription fee for those that you do watch.

You can see why this is troubling to the cable networks. Cable ratings are already low to begin with and in many markets the cable penetration is only 65-75% with satellite tv taking some market share. So if we begin to remove subscribers from specific cable networks then the ratings will dip lower and begin to erode advertising dollars instantly.

I have to say from a consumer standpoint this is a brilliant idea. I would probably buy abou 15-20 channels including ESPN, FOOD Network, FSN, TBS, MTV, etc. etc. You now know my viewing habits. However from someone who works in the media industry I see why this is only hurting, not helping the networks.

While I completely agree with the FCC trying to help consumers, it is my opinion they should be trying to help their own industry. So why create a program that is going to erode ratings and remove dollars from your own wishing well. It doesn't make sense for me and I would actually be against it.

My consumer hat says bring on the choices!

Here is the article at TV Week.

CBS's Layoffs Signal Slow Market in '08

CBS's announced layoffs last week is another signal that the market is slow in 2008. While some stations have reported an increase in revenues, such as NBC, CBS reported large losses.

The interesting take on this though is CBS cut staff in their news department. In fact they recently let go some prominent news anchors which viewers are left to scratch their heads about.

"The message being sent is, if you succeed in your job, you succeed in your craft, look out! You're too expensive," said Tom Petner, a former local broadcasting executive who edits TVSpy.com's ShopTalk, a daily industry newsletter. "I think it's shameful, because in the end the viewer loses out."

Click here to read the full article at LA Times.com

In-Store Digital Signage Is Used The Wrong Way

Today I noticed an article on Adage.com that Unilever, who recently completed a major study with Nielsen and other companies (and overpaid for the data I'm sure) is concluding that posters and in-store coupons is a more effective medium for moving product than digital technology. Recently you may have noticed at your local supermarket that more and more televisions are popping up in the produce, deli, and possibly bakery aisles. The television are typically either placed up and above the shoppers heads so they are unseen or they are right in the shoppers faces with sound so they are overly intrusive.

The point is that in-store technology including digital signage has the capability to work. There is no reason that the internet + tv model can't be fused into the supermarket to work effectively. The problem is nobody has perfected it yet. Just sticking a television in an aisle and placing ads for Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream isn't going to inrease lift. I couldn't think of a bigger waste of money.

But what if there was digital signage technology out there that had the capability of giving product information along with serving advertisements. What if this digital signage had the ability to give a store map to show you where the condiments and dishwasher soap was located? How about a machine that printed coupons for weekly specials and if you scanned your rewards card it automatically gave you discounts on products you frequently purchased? What if it was fully interactive combining the internet + television model together?

The truth is the technology isn't the problem it's the way we've attempted to integrate the technology with the user. I've written on here several times over the past year that Out-of-Home Digital Signage is the wave of the future but we have to figure out how to entice the user. We have to come up with solutions on how to make the user want to use the product.

The odds aren't high that I'm going to be going down the produce aisle and notice an ad on the screen standing eleven feet over head for a new juice drink. If I see the ad then will that make me automatically buy the drink? Probably not.

However imagine this scenario. I walk to the wine aisle and pick up a bottle that looks appealing. I scan the SKU on the digital machine and then pops up four different types of cheeses and crackers as well as a recipe that I can print with the wine.

Now we are moving product through the store.

Wake up marketers. You need to push for this type of capability. You need to be the ones who create the demand. Otherwise we will continue to see end caps and and posters and nothing new to enhance the environment or move more of your product.

The full article on Unilevers waste of money research is here at Adage.com

Check out a company that is trying to do something different in-store.

NBCU Posts A Solid Q1

Despite parent company General Electric's bleak earnings in Q1, NBCU has posted solid earnings in most all divisions with Cable revenue higher than expected.

Local broadcast sales were flat year to year and digital revenues were up 5%. It should be noted that NBC has also recently gone on record to say that they are looking to sell their Owned & Operated stations in Hartford and Miami.

Click here for the full story at MediaPost.

Family Hour Not So "Family" on NBC

Thursday nights on NBC are testing the boundaries on the historical "Family Hour." This past Thursday night proved to be no different. The Office and 30 Rock both were rated TV-14 but it's possible they could have had stricter ratings.

The real question is do viewers want a family hour. Remember the good ol' days of TGIF on ABC?

Click here to read the article at the NY Times.

CBS Creates New Ad Sales Division

CBS has recently developed a new ad sales division to speak directly to agencies about content and advertising integration. The division will work closely with ad agencies to speak their language and give more opportunities on the client side.

Instead of a program going through development and then presenting strict advertising and content guidelines to the client, CBS will now engage in discussions much earlier in the process which will allow for more creative ad options and initiatives.

Click here to read the full article at Adage.com

Katie Couric To Leave CBS?

It's no secret that Katie Couric's tenure at CBS has been rocky. She was signed to a large contract to pull the CBS Evening News from the bottom of the ratings pile but unfortunately she has yet to do so.

Yesterday a report came out that she was planning on leaving the network before her 2011 contract is due. CBS quickly shot that rumor down. Couric became the first solo Female Evening News anchor when she left NBC's Today Show.

Although it's been listed as a failed experiment so far I have to believe there are a number of reasons why the news still is in last place; and many of those reasons are not blamable on Ms. Couric. For one, the CBS Evening News was in last place before she arrived so it's not like she went from first to last overnight. The other fact is that she isn't allowed to deliver the news in her Today Show style that we all grew to love her for. Granted, I understand that news is news and needs to be delivered in a serious format but Couric is a completely different person than the one we came to love in the mornings. Although the $15 million a year is nice, I don't think it's a fit for her. (The position, not the money)

Read the full story here at the LA Times.

The Sound of the "Bleep" Catches Our Attention

Last summer, Bud.tv developed a spot that became a YouTube hit called "Swear Jar." You may have seen it posted here on this site or a friend could have emailed you the link. The point is, the commercial was hilarious.

We've always known that sex and humor sell in advertising so now marketers are capitalizing on vulgarity, or at least the bleeped out kind of vulgarity. With new methods of measuring commercials and the birth of the DVR era, marketers are trying to come up with methods to keep your attention.

Click here to read the article from the NY Times.

CBS Cuts Felt Company Wide

CBS announced today that they will move forward with job cuts of about 1% of the company, or 1,200 total employees mostly in news operations at their owned and operated network stations in major markets such as San Francisco, Boston, and New York. The cuts are partly blamed to a declining stock in Q4 as well as declining revenues across all stations after a weak Q1.

Most of the trimming appears to be done in the news departments where the Early Show has lost a few employees as well as main stay on-air talent at many networks.

Click here to read the full article at the NY Times.