media landscaping

TiVo sells data on ad viewing behavior

Engadget covers a new advertising research service from TiVo and predicts an upcoming battle with Neilsen.

TiVo is Remote-Control on Steroids

While TiVo has enabled viewers to skip ads from the networks, it is pitching itself as an advertiser ally, according to an article in The Mercury News.

As more households have DVRs, TV commercials, as we know them, will become obsolete, say industry analysts. TV ad models might become more like Internet ads, where advertisers pay per clicks. A few advertisers are shifting their attitude about DVR technology from utter panic to tentative acceptance.

TiVo has introduced several ways people can watch ads beyond the ones squeezed between TV programs. Viewers can visit its ``Showcase'' and see ads. And when people fast forward through ads, a banner ad appears asking the viewer to click for more information.

In May, TiVo launched ``Product Watch,'' which allows TiVo users to subscribe to brands or categories. For example, viewers can ask to receive travel and leisure information to be downloaded to their TiVo hard drive. They might receive four two-minute-long vignettes about recreation vehicles and travel from Go RVing, a coalition of RV makers and enthusiasts. The viewer can also ask to be sent more information or to be contacted by an RV dealer. The service is available to people with TiVos with broadband capability, about 400,000 households.

This is all very interesting and the key advantage is that these are opt-in methods for consumers to raise their hand and ask for more information. 

Content Wraps - TV Advertising 2.0?

I Blogged on May 11 and again on May 12th about the interesting ways that the TV Show LOST was integrating Ads into its online game and incenting viewers to actually watch the commercials instead of TiVo'ing past them.  Finally, mainstream media, CNN Money,  has picked up on this topic as well.

While reading this article, I was clued in to a ridiculous strategy that The CW Network (the merged UPN and WB) is pitching at the upfronts.  Its called Content Wraps and another article covering the upfront presentation by Dawn Ostroff, CW's head of entertainment, explains it well:

She also introduced a concept that the network called "content wraps": mini-shows that would appear three times a night during commercials that could be sponsored by advertisers and feature product promotion.

Each "content wrap" would tell a story. The example Ostroff gave was of two people going on a blind date.

One media buyer said that the concept was interesting and that if done effectively could keep viewers from using digital video recorders (DVRs) to fast forward through ads.

"The content wraps looked smart. It's the type of opportunity that marketers want," said Brad Adgate, senior vice president of corporate research for Horizon Media, a marketing firm. He added that younger viewers in particular may be interested in these types of mini-shows.

So now I am going to be looking forward to the commercials?  I don't think so.  How flexible and creative can this "content" be if it has to incorporate the products of a wide variety of advertisers in a short period of time?

"Bob, I can't believe you cheated on me while wearing those Nike shoes I bought you at Target last week!  I knew I should have waited until this weekend to buy them...they'll be on sale for $69.99."

"Whatever Judy, I saw you drinking a Coke with that Abercrombie and Fitch model."

James Joyner offers up some comments on his blog as well.

More on TV's changing ad model

washingtonost.com sheds some light on the strategy that Jo Ann Ross, president of advertising sales at CBS, is calling "extension" to the web.

"If you're trying to sell a car, the car appears in a 30-second ad" on television, she explained. "Also, there's product placement in the program. Then, [advertisers] can go to CBS.com and then to Innertube and perhaps somewhere else. It gives advertisers more places to reach that customer," hitting all of the various "Internet iterations," including the Web, downloads, podcasts, mobile episodes and so forth.

CBS and AOL release more info on Gold Rush

Ad Age writes about Mark Burnett's 'Gold Rush' concept.  Not a show at all, but instead a reality game that viewers play.  By allowing CBS advertisers to embed clues in their commercials they believe that DVR users will stop skipping ads and instead watch them in slow motion to catch the clues.  These clues will lead you to locations where they have hidden more than $2 Million in gold.

It is a great idea, but we will have to wait to see if people actually do it.