Tuning In

Broadcast networks broke new ground at this year's upfront, revealing year-round, fluctuating schedules and continued involvement in reality-based programming as they attempt to capture media buyers' dollars.

Compared to this year's growing cable upfront, advertisers are not reaching into their pockets as readily for broadcast ad buy. The “big six” broadcast networks are up against other sources of entertainment, including the Internet, video games and DVDs.

“Upfront marketing is terribly expensive — people are spending more money for the same number of eyeballs,” says Sunny Garga, president and CEO of Wilton, CT-based Marketing Management Analytics, a company that helps brands assess ROI from ad spending. “This is a very frustrating time for media buyers as rates continue to go up and they are making their media buy work harder to maintain the same level of effectiveness.”

Last year, the upfront took in $9.3 billion across all six networks and that number is expected to grow by 5% in 2004. According to Garga, “Marketers are sourcing money from other media, namely print and radio, and putting it into TV and online spending.” However, broadcast TV spots are no longer the end-all-be-all for skeptical marketers, who are seeking other ways to reach target audiences. This often means seeking promotions beyond the traditional 30-second TV spot, which is increasing in price by 15% to 20% this year.

While the 30-second spot is far from dead, media buyers are also looking to incorporate more promotions into their marketing mix. Though TV spots do reach consumers broadly, clients can more effectively measure return on their investment through promotions that may provide, for example, the number of Web site hits, consumer registration to sweepstakes and rebate redemption.

“Buyers are definitely looking to do more promotional overlays — with the increase in the prices and because the clients are now requiring that the buyers really have their media dollars be more accountable,” says Patti Regan, president and CEO of Los Angeles-based The Regan Group. “Clients are looking for a more tangible return on investment.”

Triple threat

The three top nets coming out of the May sweeps are CBS, NBC and Fox. This year, both Fox and NBC are trying their hand at year-round program schedules, while CBS prefers to stick with its traditional programming recipe.

“NBC's schedule is a little bit self-serving because it's year-round scheduling, starting after they have the Olympics. Fox has a different issue because of baseball,” says Leslie Moonves, chairman and CEO of CBS. “All I know is that we are up in every single category over the last five years playing the game the way we've played it. So I guess when you're failing, you want to change the rules; when you are succeeding, you don't.”

NBC and Fox beg to differ as they roll out their new scheduling tactics. Fox plans to schedule fresh shows all 52 weeks of the year and essentially have three mini-seasons. Its schedule will also be in constant flux because of both baseball and shifting reality programming, such as its hit American Idol. NBC's plan is not quite as drastic, though the net is currently rolling out new shows this summer rather than embargoing them for fall premieres.

“We're going to be seeding in comedy throughout the year — starting possibly in the fourth quarter and definitely in the spring and summer as well,” says Jeff Zucker, president of NBC Universal television group.

Going into this fall, NBC and Fox are both strong on reality programming and CBS is also banking on the success of new installments of its reality groundbreaker Survivor. Currently, NBC and CBS are neck and neck as they vie to be No. 1 in ratings among all broadcast networks. In May, following sweeps, NBC won the 18-49 demo, its fourth straight season win for this sector. CBS won the 2003-2004 season in viewers averaging 13.1 million — the largest margin of victory for any network in over 14 years, by more than 2 million viewers over NBC, 3 million over Fox and 4 million over ABC.

“The smart networks sell different shows at different levels,” Moonves says. “Twenty-five to 54 is more important to us than 18-49; there are also a number of shows that we do sell on total viewers. Viewers are extremely important and among a number of advertisers that still matters.”

After losing its two mega-comedies, Friends and Frasier, NBC will add five new series in the fall, including a Friends spin-off. The network also picked up seven additional series that will debut some time next season as part of their new year-round schedule. CBS will add five new series, with its standout expected to be its third incarnation of CSI, this time set in New York City.

Already dividing its offerings into three periods, Fox's new season began in early June with the launch of two new comedies and two new dramas. Reality will play a large part in the network's fall offerings, with The Billionaire: Branson's Quest for the Best leading the way.

Bottoming out

The low end of the totem pole is comprised of ABC, The WB and UPN. Turning away from comedy, ABC is focusing more on dramas and reality programming for this fall introducing eight new series: four scripted dramas, two sitcoms and two reality shows. The network has fallen to fourth place among viewers aged 18-49, those most highly valued by advertisers, perhaps because the network lacks a mega-hit. Viewership also fell 9% this season. ABC will attempt to rebuild its Tuesday and Friday comedy blocks to attract both more viewers and more advertisers.

The WB, having fallen 11% overall in viewership, is also struggling at this year's upfront, possibly because it is the last network to embrace reality programming. The net, a perennial teen favorite, will reinforce that position and debut two new hour-long dramas, three new comedies and add a reality show to its fall lineup for the first time this fall.

The WB recently signed a marketing agreement in which stars of its hit series will don Kmart clothing on air for cross-promotional purposes. The campaign, handled by Kmart's AOR Grey Worldwide, is expected to begin this month and last through September. It includes a mix of television, print, newspaper, online, outdoor, contests, spot radio buys and in-store promotions featuring WB talent.

“We view product placement as you would an event marketing sponsorship — without proper activation and advertising, the sponsorship is flat and you don't have enough control over it,” says Chuck Corcoran, director of entertainment for Atlanta-based GEM Group. “The key is for companies to view it as one part of the marketing mix.”

Regan agrees, “Today and more so in the future it is critical that the integration is not only a demographic fit but also a brand personality match. Consumers are savvy, especially in the youth market where they're astute and more cynical — it can't be a forced fit.”

Though at the bottom of the lineup, UPN has been attracting buzz and managed to surpass The WB in viewership. This season's schedule is designed to sustain the network's momentum among young adult and African-American viewers, establish signature nights and stars and deliver audience growth throughout the week. New additions include one comedy and two dramas.

Ones to watch

The networks debut their new programming at the upfronts, however most new installments fail to make the cut. According to Jim Chabin, president and CEO of industry association Promax & BDA, “Programming will have to find a way to evolve into the business model or it will go away. My sense is the money will continue to flow wherever new viewers are spreading.” Here is a sampling of what's to come this summer and fall, one can only speculate as to where viewers will go:

SUNDAY

9-10 p.m. Desperate Housewives (ABC)
Move over Stepford Wives - Mary Alice Scott is moving in. Mary lives in a perfect house in the perfect suburb, or used to, she's since deceased and can see more now than she ever did alive.

9-10 p.m. Jack & Bobby (WB)
The WB debuts its new drama, a snapshot of a young man being molded to beat the odds and become this mid-century's greatest presidential leader.

9-10 p.m. The Partner (Fox)
Known for its zany take on reality, Fox is pitting its new series up against the other network's dramas. The show will be similar to NBC's The Apprentice, in which a group of recent law school grads compete for a position as a partner in a major law firm.

MONDAY

8-9 p.m. The Benefactor (ABC)
Billing its new reality series as an “alternative series,” ABC has created a show around billionaire businessman and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuba as he prepares to give away a million bucks to one of 16 contestants.

8-9 p.m. North Shore (Fox)
Playing off the overnight success of its prime-time soap The OC, Fox introduces a new cast of beautiful characters on beautiful beaches — this time the staff at a Hawaiian hotel.

10-11 p.m. LAX (NBC)
NBC brings back television favorites Heather Locklear and Blair Underwood as intense rivals in this dramatic series centered in a world unto itself: a major international airport.

TUESDAY

9:30-10 p.m. Rodney (ABC)
Stand-up comedian Rodney Carrington takes viewers into the middle of real, everyday America. This comedy features a down-to-earth guy who keeps quitting or getting fired from jobs while doing stand-up in dive bars at night.

9-10 p.m. Clubhouse (CBS)
This new drama stars a 16-year-old boy who becomes a man in a world of overgrown boys when he takes a job as a batboy for a professional baseball team.

9-10 p.m. The Jury (Fox)
Fox's new legal drama focuses on the perspective of a different New York jury every week, starting with the deliberation process and unfolding each case via flashbacks.

WEDNESDAY

10-11 p.m. CSI: NY (CBS)
Building upon the success of the CSI franchise, CBS is launching another installment — this time focusing on forensic investigators who use high-tech science to follow the evidence and solve crimes in The Big Apple.

9-10 p.m. Revelations (NBC)
As religious fervor sweeps the nation with The Passion of the Christ, NBC has worked up this new limited-run drama series in which a scientist is faced with challenges as he investigates the coming apocalypse.

9-10 p.m. Kevin Hill (UPN)
Taye Diggs stars as a 28-year-old, hotshot lawyer in New York City, left to raise the six-month-old daughter of his cousin, who unexpectedly passed away.

THURSDAY

9-10 p.m. Life As We Know It (ABC)
This coming of age drama is about three hormone-charged teenage boys who are trying to do something even harder than losing their virginity — and that's to grow up without totally freaking out.

8-8:30 p.m. Joey (NBC)
This Friends spin-off follows the aspiring actor to Los Angeles, where he chases his dream, reunites with his sister and moves in with his 20-year-old nephew.

8-9 p.m. The Mountain (WB)
Oliver Hudson (yes, Goldie's son and Kate's brother) plays a free spirit who finds himself fighting to protect the family business from a rival developer in this ski resort drama.

FRIDAY

8:30-9 p.m. Savages (ABC)
Tucked into ABC's TGIF comedy line-up, this series from exec producer Mel Gibson centers on a single dad raising a brood of boys.

10-11 p.m. dr vegas (CBS)
Emmy-nominee Rob Lowe plays a physician who takes a gamble when he becomes the in-house doctor at a Sin City casino.

8-9 p.m. The Next Great Champ (Fox)
Showing striking similarity to NBC's The Contender, this reality series features six-time world champion Oscar De La Hoya as he mentors boxers to become prizefighters.

NOTE The nets have put no programming innovation into Saturday night.

TV's Biggest Spenders

Company	2002	2003	% change
Procter & Gamble Co.	$2,143.70	$2,672.10	24.70%
General Motors Corp.	$2,494.10	$2,486.20	-0.30%
Time Warner Inc.	$1,833.10	$1,879.30	2.50%
DaimlerChrysler AG	$1,390.00	$1,573.70	13.20%
Ford Motor Co.	$1,430.10	$1,414.40	-1.10%
Walt Disney Co.	$1,162.50	$1,369.30	17.80%
Johnson & Johnson	$1,044.60	$1,171.40	12.10%
Verizon Communications	$1,020.90	$1,121.80	9.90%
Sony Corp.	$905.70	$1,017.10	12.30%
Toyota Motor Corp.	$936.10	$1,009.50	7.80%
Total	$14,360.70	$15,714.90	9.40%
Source: TNS Media Intelligence/CMR