Today's TV Top 10

TV biz in a basket for you. If you care about the TV business like we do and want to stay up on the latest but don’t have time to digest everything from everywhere– take advantage of our work: save this link and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Every day we’ll post the top ten (or more) articles on the business of TV disruption. And each day we’ll push what you missed to the bottom. So, you can stay on top of the news or at the end of the week have a sick batch of news to skim through. You’re welcome, we love you.Right Place At The Right Time: iSpot’s New Multitouch Attribution PlatformTVREV -- Alan Wolk“Multi-touch attribution” means that iSpot knows when and where an ad airs on a Smart TV set, and it can also identify when another device in the same house does something related to the ads they just saw. iSpot.tv now tracks consumer purchases and maps TV data on the same footing as digital, adding digital-like accountability. Tracking consumer purchase decisions helps answer advertiser concerns about how much of their ad spend is effective. It allows for A/B testing of creative and for more specific targeting, down to time of day and app. By providing attribution data, iSpot is helping to keep TV at the top of the food chain.With O'Reilly Gone, All Eyes on AdvertisersAdvertising Age -- Jeanine PoggiEven without O'Reilly, Fox is expected to continue to ride the so-called Trump bump. Brian Wieser, analyst, Pivotal Research Group, expects the total impact of O'Reilly's departure to be limited, estimated that anyone who replaces him in the 8 p.m. hour will still draw about 75% of his audience.Nielsen Adopting Show IDs From GracenoteMultichannel News -- Jon LafayetteNielsen is adopting Gracenote’s program identifiers as the standard in its audience measurement processes. Gracenote will be used to identify content on linear TV, VOD and over-the-top platforms.Telemundo, Gaining on Univision, Amps Up World Cup MarketingAdvertising Age -- E.J. ShultzTelemundo has been in second place to Spanish-language leader Univision, but now has chance to get a huge ratings boost by broadcasting the FIFA World Cup in 2018 in Russia. Telemundo is teaming up with Anomaly to market the broadcast and maximize Telemundo's investment. SMI: TV Ad Spending Rose 0.9% in First QuarterBroadcasting & Cable -- Jon LafayetteAd spending on national TV rose 0.9% in the first quarter. Categories that increased spending in included quick-service restaurants, up 12%, prescription drugs, up 17.1%, and insurance companies, up 10%, according to Standard Media Index.Is Mobile About to Overtake Traditional TV Viewing?Adweek -- Kevin EckA recent study from eMarketer showed that the average time consumers spend on their mobile devices has increased by nearly a minute per day over the past four years, while the amount of time they spend watching traditional TV sets has dropped by more than 30 seconds in the same time period. But while mobile might be the primary way consumer watch TV shows, the small screen doesn’t do all programming justice and TV habits will be slow to change.Fox News Poised to Drop Bill O’Reilly Amid Sexual Harassment ScandalVariety -- Cynthia LittletonFollowing a cascade of sexual harassment allegations, Fox News Channel will end the 21-year tenure of Bill O’Reilly.Oracle Makes Another Major Data Move, Inking a TV Ad-Targeting Deal With Charter CommunicationsAdweek -- Christopher HeineOracle is partnering with Charter Communications to deliver targeted ads to the cable TV giant’s 16.5 million subscribers. The endeavor marks Oracle Data Cloud’s first foray into the addressable television space and is designed to complement its recent agreement with smart TV ads player Simulmedia.Why Hollywood’s Writers are on the Verge of a Strike — and What It Could Mean for the IndustryVox -- Alissa WilkinsonThe impending 2017 strike could be as irritating as the 2007 strike to viewers, but the stakes are even higher this time, with many writers struggling financially as a result of changes in the industry. Last time, the strike gave the upper hand to streaming giants like Netflix. If the writers go on strike on May 4, the outcome for networks could be enormous. Fox Lacks Ad-Sales Chief As TV Upfront LoomsVariety -- Brian SteinbergFox Broadcasting secured between $1.47 billion and $1.64 billion in advance advertising commitments in last year’s upfront, but as the TV landscape changes Fox hasn’t been able to fill the Ad-Sales chief before the Upfronts.Merging Digital, TV Ad Tech: Q&A With TiVo's Joan FitzGeraldMediaPost -- Charlene Weisler,Regarding cross-platform measurement, FitzGerald notes that digital and linear TV are separate throughout almost the entire ad tech stack. This impacts our ability to sell inventory and measure across both platforms, so we need an integrated approach to the business and execution layers.The Whopper Lives! Burger King's 'Connected' Ad Triggers Google Home Once AgainAdvertising Age -- Ann-Christine DiazGoogle disabled Home's responsiveness to Burger King’s spot just hours after its release, generating even more press for Burger King. Last night, Burger King ran another version of the ad during "The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon" and "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" -- one that, once again, Google Home responds to.‘The Fate of the Furious’ Tops Studios’ TV Ad Spending for Third Straight WeekVarietyUniversal Pictures tops studio’s promotional spending for the third week in a row with ads for the Fate of the Furios. Ads placed for the action thriller had an estimated media value of $5.91 million through Sunday for 1,531 national ad airings across 45 networks. Regional Sports Networks Gain Favor Among TV MarketersMediaPost -- Wayne Friedman,Regional sports TV networks maintain their popularity with advertisers -- and viewers. Heading into the new Major League Baseball season, Kannan Venkateshwar, media analyst of Barclays Research, says advertising sellout levels were at 80% prior to opening day. The cost per thousand viewers (CPM) was up 6% versus a year ago.Comcast Gets Unshackled With NBC Deal Curbs Expiring Next YearAdvertising AgeWhen Hulu introduced a commercial-free option in 2015, NBC executives were frustrated. Despite owning a stake in Hulu, they could only watch even though they preferred that streaming-video provider stick with an advertising-supported model, according to two people close to NBC.Now, Comcast and NBC can start to contemplate a world without government constraints. The last restrictions expire in September 2018. NBC is planning an online video service with shows from its own TV networks in the next 12 to 18 months‘Saturday Night Live’ Gets Ratings Boost With Coast-to-Coast Live AiringVariety -- Cynthia Littleton“Saturday Night Live” delivered its highest ratings since February with its first-ever episode to air live in all U.S. time zones. Saturday’s segment averaged 7.9 million viewers and a 2.3 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to Nielsen’s live-same-day measure. That’s the show’s best since the Feb. 11 episode hosted by Baldwin brought in 10.8 million viewers and 3.1 in the demo.Sky and Virgin Media in Talks Over Targeted TV Advertising Tie-UpThe Telegraph -- Christopher WilliamsSky and Virgin Media are close to a landmark deal to join forces in the advertising market, in a move meant to challenge local media and tempt spending away from Google and Facebook. The pay-TV and broadband rivals are in advanced discussions over a partnership that will effectively mean Virgin Media will join Sky’s Adsmart targeted advertising network, industry sources revealed.‘Saturday Night Live’ Gets Ratings Boost With Coast-to-Coast Live AiringVariety -- Cynthia Littleton“Saturday Night Live” delivered its highest ratings since February with its first-ever episode to air live in all U.S. time zones. Saturday’s segment averaged 7.9 million viewers and a 2.3 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic, according to Nielsen’s live-same-day measure. That’s the show’s best since the Feb. 11 episode hosted by Baldwin brought in 10.8 million viewers and 3.1 in the demo.An Invigorated Viacom Is Bouncing Back and Scaling Down This Year After a Chaotic 2016 UpfrontAdweek -- Jason LynchViacom will be talking to buyers about purchasing more inventory via the company’s Viacom Vantage data platform, in tandem with OpenAP, the new audience targeting platform created with Turner and Fox Networks Group.TV Upfronts Preview: Less Glitz and More MetricsThe Hollywood Reporter -- Michael O’ConnellOver this season, primetime ratings have fallen 9% as broadcast networks try to turn to new measurement tools and a writers strike threatens to derail the fall lineup. In an effort to avoid a decline from 2016, which drew some $9 billion in early ad commitments, media buyers predict the networks will shift their focus from programming to their consumption statistics. CBS will look to Nielsen’s Total Content Ratings while Fox will lean on Open AP, hoping new metrics can distract from underperforming shows.Why Viacom Is Rebooting Spike As The Paramount NetworkMediaPost -- Wayne FriedmanAfter years of television networks becoming increasingly niche, Viacom is spiking one of its most targeted brands in pursuit of a broader audience by leveraging its flagship studio name, transforming young adult male-oriented Spike into The Paramount Network later this year. Spike's advertising revenues have been steadily increasing, pulling in $621.5 million in national sales during the 12 month-period ending April 2017, according to iSpot.tv. During the same period a year earlier, Spike took in $502.4 million.Stephen Colbert on 10 Weeks at the Top, Trump and Why He "Would Trade Good Ratings for a Better President"The Hollywood Reporter -- Marisa GuthrieThough Fallon retains a narrow edge among viewers 18-to-49, Colbert's #1 Late-Night-streak now stands at 10 weeks. In the first quarter, Late Show averaged 3.29 million viewers a night compared with The Tonight Show's 3.02 million, a 17% year-over-year jump for Colbert and a 17% sag for Fallon.Mic Hires Former Vevo and Nielsen Exec as President Amid Video PushVariety -- Todd SpanglerMic hires a former Nielsen exec as its first president. Mic is exploring launching a TV channel that may be distributed on streaming-video platforms as well as developing long-form, premium programming for TV and online distributorsAdvertising On VOD Rises 21%MediaPost -- Wayne FriedmanThe number of advertising impressions grew 21% to nearly 5 billion in the first quarter for network TV programmers running video-on-demand platforms on traditional pay TV providers: cable, satellite, and telco according to Canoe Ventures.Infographic: Who’s Watching TV’s Biggest Shows and How Their Interests Align With BrandsAdweek -- Emma BazilianTo help brands fine-tune their TV targeting, audience measurement and marketing company Quantcast pulled search data on the demographics of people searching for specific TV shows. This type of data could be helpful for shows looking for more viewers, capturing audiences who are interested in the show but haven’t become viewers yet. Smart TV privacy policies: Here’s what you're actually agreeing toChicago Tribune -- Hayley TsukayamaWhile TV manufacturers make it fairly clear that they may share viewing information with advertisers and technical partners, legal experts highlighted that data collected through your television can also show up in places that are completely unexpected, such as data brokers that sell your information to buyers including insurance companies or credit bureaus.For Some Networks, Bigger Is Actually Better at the UpfrontsAdweek -- Jason LynchAMC and A+E opted for more intimate Upfronts presentations last year, but are bringing back the large events this year as a way to showcase talent and shows while weaving in data.