Hey Zucker, Did NBC Get Money From Zenith For TVs All Those Years?
from the sour-grapes-and-bad-management dept
It's been really disappointing to watch NBC make pretty much all the wrong moves in the digital entertainment space over the last few years. Recently, it's been getting more and more ridiculous in its bizarre attempts to blame everyone else for its problems -- and I think it's time to pin the problem squarely on NBC boss Jeff Zucker's shoulders. Zucker took over the top spot at NBC earlier this year, and immediately bashed YouTube just as other NBC execs were talking about how useful YouTube was, and how when embraced it was a huge opportunity for the company. Then, NBC execs started blaming ISPs and the government for failing to protect NBC's obsolete business model, even to the point of absolute ridiculousness, when a senior NBC exec had to say with a straight face that file sharing was harming poor corn farmers (despite the fact that corn farmers are doing quite well).Zucker's latest blame target? Apple. Apparently Apple has "destroyed the music business." That's funny, most people would note that Apple actually helped to save the digital music business after Zucker's friends over at the record labels tried their best to kill it. Besides, Zucker's flat out wrong. As we've seen time and time again, the music business is doing phenomenally well in every single aspect, save CD sales. More music is being created. More music is being heard. More bands are making more money through touring and alternative business models. Businesses that sell complementary products are doing amazingly well as well. Musical instrument sales are apparently up significantly and lots of folks are spending tons of money on equipment to listen to music (sometimes to ridiculous lengths).
And that's the crux of Zucker's second problem with Apple. He's pissed off that the company picked the right business model, while his company picked the failing business model. That is, he's blaming Apple for selling iPods and not giving the entertainment industry a cut of the hardware: "Apple sold millions of dollars worth of hardware off the back of our content, and made a lot of money. They did not want to share in what they were making off the hardware...." In other words, Apple understood the basic economics of content and how that would play out inevitably in the trends facing the industry and NBC was caught clueless.
It's unclear why anyone should then feel pity for NBC. It screwed up, and it's blaming the company that was successful. The fact that Zucker is still lashing out and blaming everyone for his own company's failure -- and then asking the gov't to protect its business model rather than innovate -- suggests that he's the wrong man for the job. NBC should look to hire someone who actually has some sort of forward-looking vision, rather than a backwards looking protectionist who feels everyone else should pay up for his own failures. It shouldn't be a surprise that Zucker was bad news for NBC even before he took over. Last year he was quoted as saying that NBC clearly had a better business model than Google. It's possible that NBC could create a better business model, but the old, failing, obsolete one needs a big, big makeover, and blaming everyone else for your problems isn't a part of that process. I know that there are plenty of folks who work under Zucker who read Techdirt (sometimes they leave angry comments). Why don't you give us a call. We'll help you sort out your strategy.
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Filed Under: jeff zucker
Companies: apple, nbc universal
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What a dufos
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A Step further?
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Radical Spark
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Re: Radical Spark
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Re: Radical Spark
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Re: Radical Spark
As for TFA, I'm sure NBC HAD a better business model, but it sounds like time to diversify. Hmm... They'd probably end up buying and mismanaging a popular startup. Were these companies this naive before they were giants, and just happened upon the newest thing by luck? Or did someone/somebusiness with money just ride a good purchase to the top?
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Re: Radical Spark
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Re: Radical Spark
as far as NBC, the only good thing they have going for them is Heroes!!!
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Re: Radical Spark
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11
Now that would make an interesting addition to this article.
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Re: 11
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Re: Radical Spark
Probably about to go under if this is their marketing strategy...
On Topic:
Right - on! Zucker and all of his cronies just need to stop whining and figure out there own corner (so to speak) of the market. They have great content just use it. GAWD!
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The Name Sounds Familiar
I understand why one is free and one should be paid for.
With OTA, you have to build a million dollar transmitter, like WNBC, to cover a few square miles.
With WWW, somebody else pays for the server, fiber and all the distribution to cover the world.
Wait, I guess I don't understand after all.
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Re: The Name Sounds Familiar
Yes they may ask to get paid for their content, but honestly wouldn't it generate more buzz to sell the online content on the cheap to get the masses watching the broadcast on a LARGE TELEVISION instead of a small ipod?
I know DVR is killing broadcast, but shouldn't that just be a wake up call that maybe they should start offering all their content on demand and offering advertisers a more "targeted" opportunity to hit exactly who they want w/ % SOV in the marketplace similar to how online adds are purchased?
If they start there maybe they can get started on where TV is actually going and survive the holocaust of the upfront. It won't die this year but once TV is on demand and no one watches the ads to the majority of the US population(5 years)it won't be far off until they can't meet any gauarantees made for negotiations.
Then the mass broadcast will be the "bonus" weight and the on demand product sponsorships or whatever it is will be the paid for advertising.
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Re: Re: The Name Sounds Familiar
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Edit yor artikles
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Big Media
If I were in charge of big media my goal would be to increase the average media consumed per week.
I think they should move to a pay per view/listen model and solve all the entertainment industries woes.
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Re: Big Media
Before that though i was online chatting, playing video games and watching TV and ignoring most of the advertised content.
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Re: Big Media
NBC needs to can that idiot before he sinks the ship with no hope of salvage.
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Funny thing is when I search it on google its only gives three results.
1.The site itself (which I refuse to go to).
2.The comment in this post.
3.A comment in another tech blog (whose topic was about competing against Google).
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Re:
Funny thing is when I search it on google its only gives three results.
1.The site itself (which I refuse to go to).
2.The comment in this post.
3.A comment in another tech blog (whose topic was about competing against Google).
Ooops. By "it" I meant that silly www.radicalspark.com spam post.
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Mike, I don't think you can count Guitar Hero equipment as musical instruments. =}
At least, even if Zucker gets the boot, he will still get paid $350M at the end of the year.
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Hm...
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bravo
After reading so many Techdirt articles, I truly understand why this country "needs" so many lawyers.
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Re: Poorly done astroturf
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=radicalspark&btnG=Google+Search
collection of online sales tools to ignite your sales! Coming in January 2008.
Hey, doofus, you might want to hold off on spamming until AFTER you launch the domain. Especially since these comments making fun of you are now at number 3 on Google. The more people link to this discussion the more difficult it will be to hide them. Bravo on your cunning plan.
Also, lots of chuckles in the WHOIS lookups for the domains surrounding RadialSpork (now there's a visual,sounds like a Ninja Master weapon to me).
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Re: Doofus (again)
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hmm
If it only cost you 2cents to listen/watch each time, lets assume 15$ for the disk and 10 tracks.(same can be said for video, lets assume 10cents to watch an episode)
You'd have to listen to each track 75 times for you to see any benefit of actually owning the content.
Not sure about you but I'd rather experiment with new material for another measely 2cents then rehash the same old boring Disk or episode.
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Re: hmm
Over the years quite a few times. Put all my music on open source media server to stream when on the computer. I buy on release week and get the disc for $9.99 anyway. Just remember once everyone is locked into the pay-per-view/listen , the cost of each view/listen will go up, and up, and up. Once they have you, you are screwed... I pick up DVDs after they have been out a while, does not take long to drop from that stupid high price down to something reasonable($9.99 or less/sometimes $3.98/$4.99). A few are purchased on release week for $13.99/14.99 if it is one that will be watched over and over a lot.
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Traditionally
I guess things haven't changed much some 37 years later.
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one more time
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Can we say Hulu.com
Zucker took NBC content from iTunes so that NBC could market it with FOX as a partner on their own pay service called hulu.com. It was announced that hulu would go live in October. No sign yet of hulu on 30 October and FOX is now distributing their shows through iTunes.
No wonder he sounds down trodden. He was betrayed.
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Does this have anything to do with the Singularity
Moving on...is anyone surprised that this old media mogul just doesn't get it? Oh, and the same people laughing at Zucker are probably the same folks who laughed at Google Ads. Google, selling ads? For profit? Huh? Yeah, right. That includes me. To this day, I believe that "No one can make money off the internet" although there have been a surprising number of success stories.
On the bright side, it appears that technology will one day pass us all by, and we old geezers will be scratching our heads wondering, "Gee, how does this stuff work?" While 2-year olds will own the world.
Sounds fine to me.
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keep your eyes to the sky
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Maybe that's why Zenith went bankrupt and was boug
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David Vs. Goliath
What he apparently doesn't realize is that he isn't David. YouTube and the iPod are our stone to the forehead of the Goliath mega-media outlets of this common age.
We're winning!
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I've tried, Oh God I've tried... but a previous post sums it all up-
http://techdirt.com/articles/20070615/123323.shtml#c185
You can still do it... Just pick up the phone and call Steve.
http://techdirt.com/articles/20071021/135730.shtml#c49
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But of course, you fail to point out that Zenith was NOT reselling NBC's shows; nor were they remitting royalties for each NBC show watched on a Zenith TV...in fact, the "business model" as you so quaintly discuss it was and STILL IS very different!
More to the point, when the customer BOUGHT a Zenith TV, he was then FREE to do with it/watch with it whatever he wanted. In fact, the customer could even receive NEW CHANNELS (and thus content) that didn't even exist at the time of purchase...and Zenith got nothing extra and had no control over the hardware OR THE CONTENT DISPLAYED ON IT after it left the factory.
So things are just a teeny, tiny bit different.
What is so surprising is that you are upset that NBC is doing the only LOGICAL and appropriate thing a content PRODUCER can do...disintermediate the proprietary middleman.
So, is it better or worse for the CONSUMER if NBC controls it's own content/sets it own pricing/enables MULTIPLE delivery methods and eliminates an EXCLUSIVE content agreement that forces consumers to purchase a PROPRIETARY device to view it? Waiting for your answer.
A final thought: Which is the better business to be in: Content Producer or Proprietary Content Delivery Mechanism.
The only times it sucks to be a Content Producer is when (1) you produce undesirable content or (2) you get stuck in a proprietary delivery mechanism you don't control.
The only time it DOESN'T suck to be a Proprietary Content Delivery Mechanism is when you lock up some stupid (but Desirable) Content Producer in an exclusive agreement...
And now that the Zune2 will (possibly) simplify moving NBC shows directly from home recording to portable viewing...
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Historically speaking...
Even Dumont. They all made television sets, and then started in the content business to move TVs.
So yes, there was money. But now customers want to buy content on a one-off basis.
Apple, and YouTube level the field, and there is no need to maintain a model that includes margin-eroding advertising procurement activities.
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