| Today's Top Stories | | #1 | Subway Launching Major Kids' Marketing Effort
| | | The sandwich chain is planning to spend about $41 million over three years on marketing specifically to kids, which will include TV, digital, in-store merchandising and social media, Ad Age reports. The campaign will launch in February but the first national TV spots, created by MMB, will air in March. The effort will urge kids to consume more fruits and vegetables and will tout new menu offerings.
Why This Matters: Many fast food retailers have been tweaking their kids' menus to make them healthier but critics still say they are not healthy enough. Subway is the first fast food chain to join Partnership for a Healthier America, which is supported by first lady Michelle Obama.
A Take: Ad Age
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| | #2 | Study Finds Consumers Prefer Large, Interruptive Digital Ads
| | | Conducted by Ipsos ASI on behalf of digital agency Undertone, the survey found that 90% of the 3,000 people polled said full-screen takeover ads are ads people will talk about, and 86% found them to be more entertaining than other display ads, while 79% said the ads would make them want to learn more about a brand or product.
Why This Matters: The results of this survey go counter to lots of other ones where consumers have said full-screen takeover ads are intrusive and annoying. And one caveat: Native advertising was not part of the survey. However, Undertone cofounder Eric Franchi said he wasn't surprised. "Great advertising means great creative, and takeovers help that creative break through very effectively."
A Take: Adweek |
| | #3 | REI Shifts Media Planning And Buying To SMG's Spark
| | | The sporting goods and outdoor gear retailer is moving its $40 million ad spending account from OMD, which participated in the review, according to an Ad Age report.
Why This Matters: It's been just short of two years since SMG announced plans to grow Spark into its third major full service agency. Since that time, under CEO Chris Boothe, it's picked up media accounts such as Taco Bell, Orbitz and Ace Hardware, among others, and many of them have been won in competitive reviews against larger, more established agencies.
A Take: Ad Age
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|  | • 65.9
Percentage of U.S. Internet users who use word-of-mouth to find a physician, according to research by the American Osteopathic Association. That compares to 51.9% who use an insurance provider directory and only 10.8% who use a hospital website.
– Reported by eMarketer
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| | MBPT Spotlight | This Just In: Broadcast Networks' Evening News Gets Q4 Viewership Surge By John Consoli
During the recently completed fourth quarter of 2013, 23.7 million viewers per night cumulatively watched the three broadcast network evening news telecasts, up about 700,000 viewers from fourth quarter 2012, according to Nielsen data.
Yes, 16.6 million of those viewers each night were 55-plus years old, amounting to 70% of the newscasts' cumulative viewership each night, but for pharmaceutical advertisers, for instance, that size audience, concentrated in one half-hour, is like a gift that keeps on giving.
In fact, there isn't much programming in all of television—except for the recent NFL playoffs—that averages as much as 23.7 million viewers per half-hour (as Tom Brokaw seemed to be saying in his recent comments about the popularity of the network news). And it's been well documented that in addition to the drug companies, financial companies and luxury automakers also love to target the older demo, particularly at ad rates that are much lower than broadcast primetime. For the evening news, that's mighty good news.
And speaking of broadcast primetime, this season, the Big Three—ABC, CBS and NBC—have cumulatively averaged about 24.5 million viewers per night. That compares to the 39 million viewers per night they cumulatively averaged during the 1999-2000 season, a decline of 37%. Conversely, the evening newscasts of the Big Three, with their 23.7 million average per nightly half-hour, are down only about 20% in cumulative viewership when compared to the 1999-2000 season when they averaged 28.8 million.
Most advertisers who buy the evening news telecasts do buy all three, and with the audience demographics so similar, the viewership of all can be cumed to come up with one big number.
Which newscast was the Q4 leader among women and among men? And how has the percentage of viewers who recognize the anchors of the news shifted?
For more, click HERE
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| | Fates & Fortunes | • DEBRA OCONNELL was promoted to president of ABC National Television Sales. She succeeds John Watkins, who previously announced he would be retiring at the end of January. OConnell will be responsible for national ad sales at ABC's eight owned stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Houston, Raleigh-Durham and Fresno, as well as for their digital platforms. She will also be responsible for The Live Well Network and ABC Regional Sports & Entertainment Sales and will oversee nine regional sales offices. OConnell has been with ABC for 17 years and was most recently senior VP of sales. Prior to that she was senior VP of multimedia sales and marketing. She was also VP of marketing at WABC-TV in New York, and before that worked in ABC Radio sales and marketing.
• IBRA MORALES was named president of MundoFox. He replaces Emiliano Saccone, who had held the post since the network's launch in the fall of 2012. Morales was most recently senior VP of national marketing at Katz Television Group. Prior to that, he was president of the Telemundo Station Group and senior VP of sales for Hearst-Argyle Television.
• RICHARD FINE was named managing partner, overseeing the creative and strategy teams at Redscout, owned by MDC Partners. Fine served as a partner and strategic director of Redscout for four years before departing in 2007, prior to its sale to MDC, according to an Ad Age report. Fine then cofounded and became CEO of consumer health brand Help Remedies.
• JESSICA PEZZULLO was named chief marketing officer of digital agency Huge. She succeeds Chris Hayes who departed to become chief marketing officer at agency Critical Mass. Pezzullo was most recently a senior partner at Select Resources International. Prior to that, she was a senior partner and group account director at Ogilvy & Mather, chief marketing officer at Saks Direct and worked at Digitas.
• Six television industry executives have been appointed to the executive committee of the Television Academy: JOHN LANGRAF, CEO, FX Networks and FX Productions; MICHAEL LOMBARDO, president, HBO programming; STEVE MOSKO, president, Sony Pictures Television; TED SARANDOS, chief content officer at Netflix; JAY SURES, managing director and board member of United Talent Agency; and NINA TASSLER, president, CBS Entertainment. The appointments were made by Television Academy chairman and CEO Bruce Rosenblum. |
| | What They're Watching | BROADCAST RATINGS
Soft Premiere for Fox's 'Rake' Fox's new drama Rake was roughly even in its premiere Thursday with what Glee (the time slot's most recent occupant) had been drawing, though it received a considerably higher lead-in with American Idol. Idol finished down 15% from last week's Thursday-night episode as Fox finished the night as the top network in primetime. CBS was the night's No. 2 network with a lineup of reruns. The Taste was ABC's only original broadcast of the night, rising 22% from a week ago. Community and Parks and Recreation were both even with last week for NBC. The Michael J. Fox Show was up 17% while Sean Saves the World dipped 13% to a series low. Parenthood was up 8% from last week. For the CW, The Vampire Diaries returned from hiatus even with its last original broadcast Dec. 12, while Reign was up one tenth from its last original, also Dec. 12
For more, click HERE
CABLE RATINGS
'Duck Dynasty' Wins Wednesday Night Duck Dynasty was Wednesday's top cable program, earning a 2.9, down from last week's 3.4 adults 18-49 rating. American Horror Story came in second with a 1.8, up from last week's a 1.7 adults 18-49 rating. The premiere of Wahlburgers came in third with a 1.5. Meanwhile, the conclusion of Discovery's Klondike fell to a 0.8, down from the 1.0 Wednesday's installment earned in the demo.
For more, click HERE
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| Overnight Ratings: Thursday, January 23
| | 8 PM | | NET | SHOW | A18-49
Rating | TOTAL VIEWERS
(MILLIONS) | FOX
| AMERICAN IDOL | 3.3 | 13.1 | CBS
| THE BIG BANG THEORY (R) (8:00)
THE MILLERS (R) (8:30)
| 2.9
1.9
| 12.8
8.8 | NBC
| COMMUNITY (8:00)
PARKS & RECREATION (8:30) | 1.1
1.2 | 3.0
2.9 | CW
| THE VAMPIRE DIARIES | 1.1
| 2.7
| UNIVISION
| POR SIEMPRE MI AMOR
| 1.1
| 2.7
| | ABC | THE TASTE | 1.0 | 3.8 |
| | 9 PM | | NET | SHOW | A18-49
Rating | TOTAL VIEWERS
(MILLIONS) | | CBS | THE CRAZY ONES (R) (9:00)
TWO AND A HALF MEN (R) (9:30) | 2.4
1.4 | 9.8
6.1 | FOX
| RAKE | 1.7 | 7.1 | | UNIVISION | LO QUE LA VIDA ME ROBO
| 1.5
| 3.6
| | ABC | THE TASTE
| 1.2
| 4.1
| NBC
| MICHAEL J. FOX SHOW (9:00)
SEAN SAVES THE WORLD (9:30) | 0.7
0.7 | 2.2
2.6 | | CW | REIGN | 0.7 | 1.8 |
| | 10 PM | | NET | SHOW | A18-49
Rating | TOTAL VIEWERS
(MILLIONS) | NBC
| PARENTHOOD | 1.3 | 4.4 | | UNIVISION | QUE POBRES TAN RICOS
| 1.3
| 2.8 | CBS
| ELEMENTARY (R)
| 1.2 | 7.4
| ABC
| SHARK TANK
| 1.1 | 4.0
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| | THIS WEEKEND'S BIG RATINGS STORIES TODAY | | • What Happens to Vargas Stays With Vargas The new mun2 reality series, Welcome to Los Vargas, follows the life of retired three-time world boxing champion Fernando Vargas, his wife of 20 years, Martha, their four children and Martha's father Alfredo. The series premieres Sunday night at 9 p.m. on the Hispanic cable network, which is part of NBCUniversal's Telemundo Media. Vargas had a professional record of 26-5 with 22 KOs. He was at one point the youngest boxer to win the world light middleweight title. Some of his most memorable fights were losses to boxing greats Oscar De La Hoya, Felix Trinidad and Shane Mosley. In this series he is opening his own gym and looking to train a future world champion, while raising his kids and juggling his home life. The upshot: mun2 targets millennial Hispanics with its programming, so Welcome to Los Vargas fits the audience profile it's trying to reach. The net has also been expanding its sport-related programming. The question, of course, will be how compelling the Vargas family is. |
| | • CBS Goes For More Grammy Gold The 56th Annual Grammy Awards is welcome programming for CBS, since the show always draws solid viewership—last year's telecast drew 28.4 million viewers with a 10.1 18-49 demo rating. For this year's show, airing on Sunday at 8 p.m., L.L. Cool J returns as host, while Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, who, as members of the Beatles, will receive the 2014 Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award, will also perform. Other performers include Sara Bareilles and Carole King, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Kacey Musgraves, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry and Metallica. The upshot: Last year's Grammy show crushed the competition but this year it will face some stiffer competition. NBC is televising the annual NFL Pro Bowl game which last year drew 9.8 million viewers and a 3.3 demo rating, while ABC is airing the wedding of a former star of the reality series The Bachelor, Sean Lowe. |
| | • 'The Bachelor' Looks For A Rosy Future ABC will televise the wedding of Sean Lowe, who appeared on its reality series The Bachelor, and his selection from the show Catherine Giudici. This will be the first time ABC has televised a Bachelor wedding live and it will air for two hours from 8-10 p.m. on Sunday night. Lowe, 30, picked Giudici, 27, as his future bride on the 2012-13 season of the show. The special will be titled The Bachelor: Sean and Catherine's Wedding, and past competitors on The Bachelor and The Bachlorette are expected to attend the wedding, along with friends and family. The upshot: This special goes head to head with The Grammy Awards and both will vie for female viewers on Sunday night. Don't sell fans of The Bachelor and Sean and Catherine short: During that season of The Bachelor, when Sean selected Catherine to be his bride, the series averaged a solid 8.4 million viewers and a 2.7 18-49 demo rating. |
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Phone: 201-314-0424 | Send Email
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Phone: 917-281-4735 | Send Email
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Phone: 917-281-4708 | Send Email
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