Exec Calls For Stock Market-Like Upfront

While not a new idea, DaimlerChrysler Director of Brand Communication Julie Roehm, speaking at this week's Association of National Advertiser's Television Advertising Forum proposed an overhaul to the television upfront that would convert the yearly back room deal making process to a more open, stock exchange-like marketplace where spot costs would be determined just as companies price their shares and the costs would fluctuate based on market demand. Sounds fair to us.

This method of treating one spot just like another does not sit well with television sales types, though, who like to create artificial, perceived value and bundle the good stuff with the less than desirable inventory just to get rid of it.