NBC's Greenblatt at TCA: "We Need to Redefine What 'Broadcaster' Means"

But NBCamp8217s portion of the tour began the way every broadcasteramp8217s time at TCA should with an upbeat newsworthy executive session that set the tone for the day to comeamp160 NBC Entertainment Chairman Bob Greenblatt joined by NBC Entertainment President Jennifer Salke and Alternative and Reality Group President Paul Telegdy opened with remarks that supported not only the strength of his own network but that of broadcast overall Greenblatt Salke and Telegdy are pictured at top left to rightIt was no surprise that This Is Us was top of mindamp160 amp8220Thisamp160kindamp160of game changeramp160just doesnamp8217t come along very oftenamp8221 Greenblatt said of the show thanking series creator Dan Fogelman and the cast pictured belowamp160 amp8220Not only was it the No 1 new series in the 1849 demo but it now currently ranks as the No 5 entertainment show in total viewers on all of television broadcasting or cableamp8220Here are a couple more eyeopening statisticsamp8221 he continuedamp160 amp8220Through midJuly This Is Us is averaging 26 million viewers per episode and the pilot alone has been seen by 32 million peoplequotThe good news didn39t end there amp160Greenblatt said Saturday Night Liveamp160quotjust had its mostwatched season in 23 years with an average of 11 million viewers per episode which is up 36 versus the prior season on the Live7 measurementamp8221 amp160America39s Got Talent currently in its 12th season is enjoying its highest rated season everNBC has the Super Bowl and the Olympics in February which Greenblatt believes will make the network No 1 in both the 1849 demo and in total viewers next year something NBC hasnamp8217t accomplished since 2002 amp160amp8220I know sports will play a big part in that but Iamp8217m optimistic we will also hold our 1849 lead even when sports are factored outamp8221 he saidamp8220All of this makes me very bullish about our future and the future of broadcasting in generalamp8221 Greenblatt declaredamp160 amp8220While we know that linear viewing is declining delayed viewing and digital are not only keeping the broadcast business afloat but actually going pretty strong amp160I know the general consensus for a while has been that the broadcast networks are aging dinosaurs just getting closer to extinctionamp160 Iamp8217m happy to say NBC is very much alive and well today and Iamp8217d love to change that narrative a littleamp160 In fact in our core demo more people watched our original programming this year than they did last year and thatamp8217s without a Super Bowl or an Olympics to inflate the comparisonamp8220Furthermore if you look back seven years which by the way is the year the iPad came on the market and Netflix started offering a standalone streaming service our entertainment programming is actually up 12 since thenamp8221 he continuedamp160 amp8220My point is that I donamp8217t think the broadcasting narrative should be linear versus digital anymore but rather linear plus digital amp160I think itamp8217s a great time to be a broadcaster but we also need to redefine what amp8216broadcasteramp8217 fundamentally meansamp8220A whole new business model is evolving for us which is being driven by new technology and the will of the viewer Our goal isnamp8217t to just attract the most eyeballs to the network anymore but to bring content to audiences wherever and whenever they want to watch it amp160Each platform reaches a different audience and we want to get as many of them into the tent as possibleamp8221Greenblatt gave credit to the many new platforms out there for NBCamp8217s increased strength among younger demographicsamp160 amp8220Weamp8217re now reaching more young people because viewers on digital and over the top platforms are 20 years younger on average for us than those watching the networkamp8221 he saidamp160 amp8220And with the new digital MVPDs coming online like YouTube and Sling we might even see some of these younger people tuning into the live feed as wellamp8220Weamp8217re also monetizing virtually all of these platformsamp8221 he later addedamp160 amp8220Itamp8217s not a coincidence that NBC Entertainment just had its most profitable year in 17 years and we just wrapped up our best Upfront in eight yearsamp8221Greenblatt noted that the total audience for a program beyond Live Same Day Live3 and Live7 is more important than everamp160 amp8220Today everything else matters and the long tail can be quite dramaticamp8221 he saidamp160 amp8220Broadcast shows have a starting line but they seem to have almost no discernible finish lineamp8221He talked about the true 1849 ratings of several NBC series starting of course with the pilot of This Is Us amp160Its Live Same Day rating was quota very healthyquot 28amp160when it was first telecast last September he recalledamp160 With Live3 added across all platforms that rating increased to 46 amp160The Live7 numbers brought it to 56 amp160Add days 8 through 35 and then go beyond day 35 and after 10 months amp8220the pilot episode stands at a whopping 13 ratingamp8221 he saidThe last time a single episode of a scripted series had anywhere near a 13 rating was 23 years ago when NBC telecast the pilot of ER on Sept 19 1994 which scored a 12 rating amp160amp8220Itamp8217s not apples to applesamp8221 Greenblatt admittedamp160 amp8220They got it all in one night amp160But the fact remains that if you look at our business holistically This Is Us on broadcast television is still capable of reaching a massive audienceamp8221Greenblatt cited several more examples of show ratings growing significantly over time including those for Saturday Night Liveamp160 Its Season 42 premiere had a Live Same Day rating of 23 amp160With delayed viewing numbers added the rating rose to a 53amp8220The world has changed the audience has changed and our business model is changingamp8221 he told the criticsamp160 amp8220I could use your help getting the word out or at least giving broadcast television the benefit of the doubtamp8221Click on the social media tiles above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively those of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated bloggersamp160

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NBC's Greenblatt at TCA: "We Need to Redefine What 'Broadcaster' Means"

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