by Wayne Friedman on Sep 16, 1:15 PM
"Heads will roll." You hear that on lot on TV. (Currently there's a rogue UBS trader in London who has "some 'splaining" to do.) But this phrase might also apply to Hulu's next owner -- namely, who will be making Hulu's TV content deals, and with what business model?
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 15, 5:00 PM
Whatever business metric value you like when looking at NBC in comparison to its broadcast rivals, probably the biggest metric comes down to this number: 20%. "No network has ever been as far behind financially as NBC is," said Steve Burke, president/CEO of NBC Universal, at a recent industry event.
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 14, 5:00 PM
A record number of Americans -- some 46.2 million -- now live under the poverty line. That's 15.1% of all who live in the U.S, or a little less than one-sixth of the total. Comcast, meanwhile, has just started offering a $10-per-month discount Internet package (as well as discount netbook computers) to many poor Americans). But don't think this is entirely philanthropic. Comcast agreed to the plan as part of its FCC conditions in buying a majority stake in NBC Universal.
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 13, 5:30 PM
TV networks haven't been all that pushy about telling viewers where they can watch TV shows online. Typically, there's some short messaging at the end of TV promos. Networks want to tell viewers they have more options -- but they are not ready to devote an all-out assault, especially some of this activity may still conflict with traditional deals made with cable operators, satellite distributors and others.
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 12, 4:30 PM
A Ponzi scheme, 9/11 honorifics and Schweddy Balls are some current topics in the big television landscape.
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 9, 11:00 AM
Take the most valuable programming and hold it hostage to viewers. What do you think would happen? Would viewers pay an extra fee for NFL football, "American Idol," or the season and series finales of any big show?
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 8, 1:00 PM
We are once again reminded that time periods and scheduling still matter in the digital TV world. Tonight, two big events will give U.S. viewers some things to think about: - First, a possible $300 billion plan from President Obama, including some tax cuts, to create jobs and get the economy going again, including. - Later in the evening, we can see if last season's NFL Super Bowl champs, the Green Bay Packers, can beat the 2010 champs, the New Orleans Saints
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 7, 11:45 AM
User-generated videos? They seem so... 2006. But based on the continued growth of YouTube, they're still very popular. The question is: What's next?
by Wayne Friedman on Sep 6, 5:00 PM
A new report suggests that half of all U.S. adults could be obese in about 20 years -- a dramatic increase from the one-third of U.S. adults who are currently obese. This comes after decades of messaging in TV content and marketing efforts: We need to eat better; we need to exercise more. Who doesn't hear this ringing in his or her ears, like all of the time?
by Steve McClellan on Sep 2, 4:30 PM
Once again, TV is targeting baby boomers with nostalgia shows about their coming-of-age decade, the 1960s, thanks mostly to the cult hit status achieved by "Mad Men," AMC's early-'60s period piece about advertising hot shots and the melodramatic lives they led.