Online Ad Rates Higher On Certain TV Shows Than TV Ad Rates
from the go-simpsons dept
We were just being told by a supposedly respectable media analyst that things like Hulu were anti-American, because it gave away content for "free" and could potentially bring down the entire media business. Yet, it appears that media businesses are learning how to monetize that online content quite well. Bloomberg notes that for shows like The Simpsons and CSI, online ad rates are actually higher than TV ad rates. There are good reasons for this, including the fact that advertisers recognize viewers of shows online are more committed to the shows -- in that they actively chose to seek out and watch that show, as opposed to just having the TV on in the living room while doing something else. Also, people are more willing to watch those ads, in part because they're shorter and they don't have to watch as many to get to the content they want. Now, it is true that the number of viewers still represents a substantial difference and that media companies rely heavily on carriage fees from cable companies and the like. But the idea that ads can't support TV shows online doesn't seem to be based on anything in reality.Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
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Filed Under: csi, online ads, simpsons, tv ads
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Hulu Did what I thought was impossible
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The reason why big name content producers like NBC, FOX get mad at things like Hulu is that when Hulu began they saw the website as a source of EXTRA ad money from the online streaming. However, with apps like Boxee and Hulu Desktop slowly threatening to replace conventional tv. Not only does that scare Cable companies whose business models are based on selling premium content (ie cable packages) it scare large name content producers because it could replace their original tv commerical ad return, with the online commercial return, which as I mentioned is much less.
It will be interesting to see what happens in the long run. I think in the future shows may be given smaller budgets to compensate if they are going to lose large areas of ad space from online streaming. This might mean more reality shows and less big budget shows like Lost.
I also predict more product placement in tv shows. The intergration of ads and content is the only way to ensure to advertisers that people are watching the ads. Don't be surprised when you favorite sitcom characters start asking for their spouse to grab them a can of coke from the fridge, or if sent in their checks for the AllState insurance bills.
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or you could just figure out how to deliver quality entertainment with fewer costs.
I also predict more product placement in tv shows. The intergration of ads and content is the only way to ensure to advertisers that people are watching the ads.
it can't get any worse than chuck. it's a giant commercial for bestbuy, subway, dell, and toyota. i am waiting for the episode where they have gunfights with subway sandwiches instead of pistols.
i think that product misplacement (or anti-placement) would be fun: get paid to put bad placements into shows: food that makes people sick, cars that break down, gadgets that malfunction, etc. competitors could bid to either run the ads or take them out of the show.
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Product placement probably will be a big part of the future. Some shows will do it right, and some will be ridiculous. So, just like now, some will succeed and some will fail. If product placement is done right, it does not have to be intrusive. We run into brand names every day, so it does not have to take you out of a show to see a brand name. It does take you out if it is done Transformers-style (Hey, look! This SD card I'm holding is a SanDisk! Let me hold it up to the camera so you can see!)
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Will networks take heed?
I watched the show Fringe on Fox a couple of times and at commercial break they would say, "Fringe will return in 30 seconds," or 60 depending on the break. They would either have one 30 sec ad or two 15s. Plus, it didn't seem like they increased the number of breaks. I wouldn't even bother muting since that takes about 5-10 seconds to find the remote. So I would sit through the ads.
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love Hulu desktop app
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Fox's Short Ad Breaks
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No, actually, it is mostly because they create players that absolutely lock you out of the content until you watch the ads. I cannot picture it being very profitable to hold a gun to people's heads and force them to watch an ad just to pay for the content. CNN does this, and for the most part, I totally tune out the ads. So whatever they are paying for those ads is a waste, I am not paying attention, not matter how much they try to force me.
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That's exactly what he was implying, you snarky shit. A drastic lowering of advertisement and DVD revenue will obviously preclude higher budget offerings like "Lost". That doesn't mean there won't be "quality entertainment", it just means there won't be BIG BUDGET "quality entertainment" like "Lost".
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