Television's Commercial Orgasm gets Messy, Angers Viewers

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As if consumers haven't rebelled enough about increased commercial and promotional proliferation on television, broadcasters are inserting the knife deeper and twisting it more aggressively. While ABC says the total number of minutes per hour of advertising hasn't change in three years, the network, which began the practice last season, this year has required show producers to slice episodes into six acts versus the traditional four increasing the number of breaks per hour and angering viewers in the process.

Seemingly oblivious to people's abhorance of advertising, ABC Ad Sales Chief Mike Shaw said, "We've had the exact same commercial load for three years in a row. People must "feel that way because they love the show so much, that they really notice it when the breaks are there." That's precious.

Everwood producer Greg Berlanti doesn't like the practice saying, "It makes you long for the day when everything comes out in boxed sets of DVDs so you can enjoy it." Given the rise in outraged, DVR-enabled consumers, that day may not be far off. The current television advertising model is a losing proposition. As broadcasters struggle to maintain ad revenue by shoving more ads through consumer's eyeballs, people, increasingly armed with methods of avoiding ads, will rebel, lowering ad viewership thereby causing broadcasters to foist even more insanity-based methods of forced ad viewership upon consumers until the entire broadcast television model implodes on itself and finally experiences the death it so dearly deserves.

by Steve Hall    Oct-13-05   Click to Comment   
Topic: Opinion, Television   

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Comments



Comments

Just means that people will be taking more bathroom breaks and watching fewer and fewer commercials. They are being "penny foolish and pound stupid".

Posted by: Anthony on October 13, 2005 4:46 PM

Great article - and it needs to be shared with as broad an audience as we can. I've included it in my daily round-up on the "Much Ado About Marketing" blog (for Friday, October 14) and will send it along to some other colleages.

Thanks again Steve.

Mike Bawden
Brand Central Station

Posted by: Mike Bawden [TypeKey Profile Page] on October 14, 2005 1:05 AM

I've solved much of the problem with TIVO

Posted by: Mike on October 14, 2005 5:37 PM