ABC Entertainment topper Susan Lyne and Fox Sports Net prexy Bob Thompson ponder TV's future.
Veteran marketeer Peter Sealey pronounced ad-supported television "as we know it" dead during the Advertising Club of Los Angeles' TV confab on Wednesday, but several key officials from broadcasting, cable and ad agencies insisted circumstances aren't that dire.
An alumnus of Columbia Pictures and Coca-Cola, Sealey, now a professor at UC Berkeley and Stanford, maintained that the TV model is broken and that digital video recorders such as TiVo will force advertisers into a new phase where commercial messages must be "embedded and hidden," effectively spelling the end of the 30-second spot.
But several participants in two subsequent panels (moderated by Broadcasting & Cable editor in chief Max Robbins and
Daily Variety chief TV critic/columnist Brian Lowry), while acknowledging the impact of TiVo technology, said such doom-and-gloom predictions were premature.
ABC entertainment topper Susan Lyne expressed excitement to be in the broadcast business during a time of change and innovation. She said the network is experimenting with embedded advertising with its Sears-sponsored series "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." ABC is also teaming reality producers with scripted talent on news ways to bring down the costs of hourlong drama production.
And Discovery Networks prexy Billy Campbell added that research indicates people who own PVR's are actually watching more TV, suggesting the technology presents an opportunity to the business.
Some fireworks also ensued between panelists.
MTV's Betsy Frank criticized Nielsen for making a deal with TiVo, saying their "opt-in" clientele -- as opposed to a more traditional, randomly chosen research sample -- wasn't representative of TV viewers. Frank also blasted the major networks for playing "bait and switch" with their lineups during the upfront market last spring, shelving reality programs in favor of the scripted fare advertisers prefer then bringing in unscripted shows as replacements later in the season.
Other panelists at the inaugural National Television Summit included Fox Sports Networks president Bob Thompson; ABC entertainment topper Susan Lyne; CEO of Carat North America David Verklin; Ray Warren, managing director or OMD U.S.; Ian Beavis, senior VP of marketing for Mitsubishi Motors; Mel Berning, exec veep of ad sales for A&E; president-CEO of CAB Sean Cunningham; senior VP of planning and policy for Nielsen Media Research Pat McDonough; John Muszynski, exec VP of Starcom; and Jon Nesvig, president of sales for Fox.
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