television | Internet Marketing Blog

CNN's Jonathan Klein: TV Ratings don't matter. We're competing with social networks.

It's not unusual to hear someone from a television network that's not in first place to claim that ratings don't matter. And CNN's Jonathan Klein is no different.

Speaking at the 2010 Media Summit in New York, the president of CNN said that television ratings don't paint an accurate picture of his network's strengths. But his reasoning is interesting — it's not because FOX is beating them there, but due to competition from online sources that aren't being tracked by the Nielsen ratings.

by Meghan Keane 10 March 2010 15:30pm 0 comments

Can Grasshopper combat the scurge of ad skipping? Unlikely.

For all the obvious reasons, television networks are desperate to find a solution to the dreaded practice of commercial fast forwarding. And now, Grasshopper has proposed a solution. The phone systems company has released a new ad designed to penetrate the psyche of fast forwarders by leaving the image of its mascot in the center of the screen for the entirety of its ad.

If Grasshopper wants people to recognize its mascot, these ads are great. But remembering the brand is a different story completely.

by Meghan Keane 19 January 2010 23:51pm 2 comments

ESPN looks to score with 3D

Avatar, the sci-fi blockbuster that has already grossed more than $1bn globally at the box office, has rekindled interest in 3D entertainment.

That's because a lot of the buzz around the movie, which can be viewed in a 3D flavor, can be attributed to the 3D experience.

by Patricio Robles 06 January 2010 09:23am 0 comments

Social media meets Xbox Live

The convergence of the television and the web has been promised for more than a decade now. Anyone remember Microsoft's acquisition of WebTV in 1997?

There were good reasons at the time to see the potential of a marriage between the internet and the TV, and there still are. Like a lot of predictions, however, this one was a bit premature. But is now the time?

by Patricio Robles 25 November 2009 08:54am 2 comments

Ad wars: AT&T forced to fight Verizon on its own

When Verizon went after wireless competitor AT&T with a "There's a Map for That" commercial showing AT&T's inferior nationwide 3G coverage in the United States, AT&T was caught off guard.

Its response: file a lawsuit. The justification: AT&T believed that the map was deceptive and that consumers would not understand that its map excluded areas where 2G coverage is available.

by Patricio Robles 20 November 2009 09:08am 2 comments

Sh*t My Dad Says: from Twitter to television in less than five months

Want to break into Hollywood? Try breaking into Twitter first. Just ask 28 year-old Justin Halpern and he'll tell you: Twitter can be your golden ticket.

On August 3, Halpern set up an account, @shitmydadsays. The purpose: share some of his 73 year-old dad's wisdom with the world. You see, Halpern had just moved back in with the folks and figured that some of the things his dad told him might be worth rebroadcasting on Twitter. Turns out he was right: @shitmydadsays now has over 700,000 followers.

by Patricio Robles 10 November 2009 09:45am 3 comments

Internet ad spend now higher than television ad spend in the UK: report

The economy may not be great, but the internet isn't complaining. In fact, the economy has likely helped internet advertising achieve a significant milestone in the UK. According to the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB), internet ad spend surpassed television ad spend for the first time ever anywhere in the world.

Total spending on internet ads in the UK hit £1.75bn in the first two quarters of the year, a 4.6% year-over-year gain. That's good enough to account for almost 24% of all ad spending. Television, on the other hand, now accounts for just 21.9% of ad spend following a painful 16.1% year-over-year decline.

by Patricio Robles 30 September 2009 09:36am 0 comments

Yahoo's new ads promote Google, Facebook

Yahoo's new $100m advertising campaign has launched. It's multichannel and combines television, print, radio and digital. Online, chances are you've already come across some of Yahoo's ads. They're on a variety of popular websites and in many cases, they're very visible.

I ran into one on CBS Marketwatch and couldn't help notice: Yahoo is promoting GMail/Google and Facebook in a large rich media expansion ad unit.

by Patricio Robles 29 September 2009 09:05am 5 comments

Are search ads really less 'helpful' than television and newspaper ads?

Amongst many digital marketers, it's common knowledge that search is one of the most effective advertising mediums known to man. Television? A waste of money. Newspapers? Puhleeze; most of them won't be around much longer.

But according to a poll conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of AdWeek, adults in the United States find television and newspaper ads to be more 'helpful' than search ads when it comes to making purchasing decisions.

by Patricio Robles 06 July 2009 09:17am 4 comments