Broadcast, Cable Upfront Spending Drops Again

Both broadcast and cable TV upfront advertising spending continues to suffer -- broadcast TV now down for the third year in a row, with cable revenues now lower for the second year in a row.

In the recently concluded upfront TV ad marketplace for the 2015-2016 TV season, broadcast TV networks' prime-time spending sank 3.7 percent to $8.36 billion, with cable TV networks down 2.3 percent to $9.45 billion, according to estimates from media consulting company Media Dynamics. Total prime-time dollars were down 3.0 percent to $17.8 billion. Both broadcast and cable networks did witness slight increases in the cost per thousand viewers (CPMs) of adults 18 years and older. Broadcast TV networks were up 4.0 percent on average in prime-time CPMs to $24.40, while cable TV networks grew 4.4% to $13.34