Archive for July 8th, 2008

“Screen time,” or the amount of time the average American spends watching content on a thin, flat surface, is on the rise. But the real growth is coming from nontraditional watching, not TV time, according to Nielsen.

Nielsen found that Americans spent 56% more time watching time-shifted TV, primarily on a digital video recorders, and 9% more time using the internet to watch at home and at work. Overall TV viewing — live and played back — increased only 4%, the consumer-research company said, in what may be a sign of how consumer habits are changing the way people use traditional media.

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The slowing economy is cutting into online ad growth — although it is likely to take a greater toll on offline media, according to a new survey.

William Blair & Co. surveyed 150 Chicago-area interactive marketing companies to gauge the health of the medium. While it discovered a positive outlook, the investment bank found the gloomy outlook for the economy slowing growth.

Two-thirds of respondents said economic turbulence is affecting spending. Respondents indicated an expectation Internet advertising would grow slightly more than 16 percent in the next year. In its previous surveys, William Blair tracked 19 percent growth expectations. The areas forecast to thrive: paid search and direct response ads that can be tied directly to ROI.

“Online’s healthy, but the economy is definitely having an impact,” said Sean Riegsecker, CEO of Centro, a Chicago ad service for newspaper sites, in a conference call to discuss the findings. “In a weak economy, people are going to move more towards direct response. We’re seeing brand advertising take a much bigger hit this year.”

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Bob Coen, vp and director of forecasting for Magna Global USA, has downgraded his 2008 ad spending projections by  2.7 percent for national advertising and 4 percent for local spending, saying that the economy right now is worse than it appeared it would be back in December 2007 when he made his original 2008 projections.

Coen is now projecting that national ad spending in 2008 will total $193 billion, $5.5 billion less than he originally projected, while local ad spending will be $92 billion, down from the $95.8 he originally projected. Overall, total ad spending in 2008, Coen projects, will now be $285.1 billion, up 2 percent over 2007. He originally projected the overall ad spend in 2008 would be up 3.7 percent to $294.3 billion.

“Now it is apparent that things were even worse than many had expected at the close of last year,” Coen said in announcing his mid-year ad spending update today (July 8). “Economic expectations have seriously weakened compared to last December and consumers’ disposable personal income has failed to improve in recent months.”

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Horizon Media has created a Nintendo Wii integration for client Geico, which will leverage its appeal in the recently launched Big Beach Sports game.

The effort marks the first time the media agency is weaving the brand into a game, as opposed to dynamic insertions, said Donny Williams, vp, director of digital strategy at Horizon Interactive. “It’s a value proposition that we think we need to be taking advantage of. Everyone at one point or another is in the market to get an insurance policy. It makes a lot more sense to have a continued presence,” he said.

Big Beach Sports, which debuted a few weeks ago, allows gamers to compete in several outdoor contests — such as bocce, cricket, disc golf, football and soccer — in a beach setting.

Geico’s involvement will center on sponsored events, with banners positioned around the designated beach areas. At the beginning of each event, a simulated aerial camera will display the gaming area while panning across Geico signage.

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More media may be vying for the consumer’s attention, but contrary to conventional wisdom, they’re watching more TV than ever before, according to Nielsen data released Tuesday (July 8). Consumers are also watching more time-shifted TV and using the Internet more.

The data, released Tuesday (July for the month of May marks the first time Nielsen has released comparable estimates across all three screens: TV, the Internet and mobile.

The average American watched 4 percent more TV this May compared to the same period last year, a total of 127 hours and 15 minutes. Although time-shifted viewing represents less than 5 percent of total viewing, consumers watched more time-shifted TV, 5 hours and 50 minutes compared to 3 hours and 44 minutes, a 56 percent jump.

“Commercial television is alive and well, growing 1 percent year over year, despite the rapid adoption of other platforms,” said John Burbank, chief marketing officer for The Nielsen Co., parent company of Mediaweek.

Internet usage was up 9 percent to 26 hours and 26 minutes.
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Let the games begin. Activision shareholders Tuesday are expected to approve a merger with Vivendi Games that will allow the deal to close within days and create a new top dog in the fast-growing video gaming world.

The terms of the deal, first unveiled in December, valued the new Activision Blizzard at $18.9 billion. Current gaming king Electronic Arts’ market capitalization after Monday’s market close stood at $14.1 billion, according to Yahoo Finance.

More important for Wall Street, while EA has been reporting losses, Activision Blizzard, of which Vivendi will own a slight majority, has promised to be the most profitable gaming firm and grow its bottom line at a healthy pace.

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After more than a decade as perhaps the Food Network’s most ubiquitous TV chef, Emeril Lagasse is kicking his media empire up a notch.

For starters, there’s his relationship with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, which signed the Emeril brand to a 10-year contract worth $50 million in February. He’s also distancing himself from the Food Network with the recent shuttering of his longtime cooking show, “Emeril Live,” which helped launch his signature exclamation, “Bam!” into the pop-culture lexicon.

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The holiday may be over, but the fireworks are continuing.One of the most bizarre chapters in Hollywood’s labor history hits a turning point Tuesday as AFTRA announces the results of the ratification vote for its primetime deal.

The announcement, expected to come as early as Tuesday evening, could break the stalemate that’s pervaded the biz in recent weeks.

The ballots are due today from AFTRA’s 70,000 members. SAG has spent a month in strident opposition, urging a no vote from its 44,000 members who also belong to AFTRA. Both SAG and AFTRA have lobbied hard, and a strong acceptance — or rejection — will provide a gauge of SAG’s influence and its clout at the bargaining table.

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You can now get $20 in exchange for shameless product placement in a YouTube video. In an effort to promote its new Samsung Instinct cellphone, an iPhone look-alike offered by Sprint Nextel, the carrier is paying customers to feature the phone in a homemade video.

Just a short, random appearance by the phone appears to be enough to qualify for the quick cash. The best video will receive a grand prize of $10,000.

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Omnicom’s Davie Brown Entertainment will work with Westin hotels to search for branded integration opportunities for the chain in Hollywood and beyond. Westin is part of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, which also operates the Sheraton and higher-tier St. Regis brands. Westin Hotels & Resorts has over 150 hotels and resorts in more than 31 countries and territories.

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