Tomorrow Will Be Televised … and Predicted

The Big Story So Far in 2020For me the biggest story for 2020 so far is the uncertainty and sense of unknown Will we get a second wave of the pandemic Will consumers regain their confidence How will that impact advertisers From a measurement perspective we have seen over the past six months an expanded use of screens a jump in coviewing as families are shelteringinplace and children are attending school virtually We have also seen a great increase in news viewership to inform us about unprecedented past events as well as the upcoming electionBerman concurred quotWe are in a world of unknowns now We don39t really know what is going to happen Anything can happenquot He noted that finally in the previous week the five broadcast networks announced what they are planning for the new season quotBut the question is will they be starting the fall season in the fallquot Last season he pointed out there were 17 new series 36 new shows This year we have only 8 new TV shows quotWhat they are doing is using content from other sources to fill the schedulequot He added that another unknown is live sports quotWill we have Sunday night Football I don39t knowquot I added that the absence of live sports such as NFL Football could depress ratingsThe pace of production is a concern according to Applebaum whether in LA or New York quotEveryone is on pins and needles as to when the shows will be producedquot he stated quotWhen the coronavirus pandemic started there were 7075 scripted TV shows that were in production here in New York Pilots that weren39t made and we don39t know when production will be coming backquotA Cause For Some OptimismMy note of optimism here is the sudden availability of what I call quotorigination contentquot from sources such as for example the Metropolitan Opera that are streaming past performances from their library or the ability to sample programming from international providers This enables viewers to sample content from a range of heretofore undiscovered sources Discovery is a positive aspect of all of this uncertaintyFor Applebaum it is the smart TV which is the center of all of the activity quotWe are seeing more people watch television over their Smart TV sets and smart devices subscription the major services such as whether it is Disney or Apple or Netflix Hulu and Amazon We are seeing more Smart TV services get off the groundquot he noted And advertisers are taking note of this trendAdd to this the various new uses for these screens such as online wellness amp8211 meditation and yoga amp8211 gaming virtual meetings that bring people together so the screen will expand as it becomes smarter I added It is also humanizing a lot of the talent when they broadcast from their homes offering fans a way to connect even more to their favorite hosts quotIt39s an interesting situationquot stated Berman quotbecause in the time of uncertainty amp8230 it39s almost a creative challenge and there is a lot out there to consumequot For Berman he couldn39t imagine a show like American Idol as working virtually quotbut it did work The contestants were at home performing and it felt personal It felt comfortablequotData Program Production and the ViewerWith all of these wonderful streaming services and new places to discover content the researcher in me is a little worried about how all of this will be measured There are still many walled gardens and our ability to compile all of these proprietary data sources continues to be challenged For the viewer it is a great opportunity to see more content For the industry it may be a challenge collecting the dataBerman wondered if there is a tipping point where there are so many choices and the viewer gets fatigued But with all of the potential new and coproductions being available through the myriad of services it may spark viewer enthusiasm as it increases choice quotThe way to make all of this work financially as well is coproduction and partnerships as a growing trendquot he stated quotThe content has been stellarquotWith all of this content out there how can your programming be discovered by the consumer Marketing plans will have to be reevaluated and very creative to best navigate all of the available platforms and opportunities to view quotI39ve been noticing a lot of live eventsquot noted Berman who attended a special event for The Marvelous Mrs Maisel before the pandemic quotThey were making it more interactive more live That is on hold now but maybe it will go back againquotThe future may be uncertain but one thing is sure the media industry remains an indispensable element in people39s lives and what happens in the next six months may set the tone for the foreseeable future Certainly a medium that continues to offer compelling original content in flexible formats is here to stay amp8230 providing we can figure out how to best measure itClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Tomorrow Will Be Televised … and Predicted

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Charlene Weisler

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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Tomorrow Will Be Televised … and Predicted

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Charlene Weisler

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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