TV Ad Market Primed for Pay-by-Pod; Move Would Mark Historic Shift

TV AD MARKET PRIMED FOR PAY-FOR-POD; MOVE WOULD MARK HISTORIC SHIFT
[SOURCE: AdAge, AUTHOR: Claire Atkinson]
This year's $9.05 billion upfront may well be the last negotiated on the basis of program ratings as the TV-ad business embarks on one of the most radical shifts in its 65-year history. Broadcasters are preparing to junk the age-old metric of charging on the basis of who watches the programs and begin charging advertisers based on who watches the commercials. Execs at three of the big networks believe next year's upfront will be negotiated with commercial ratings, and Mike Shaw, president-sales and marketing at ABC, which raked in the biggest upfront ad haul this year, thinks it could happen even sooner, in the scatter market, well ahead of next year's marketplace. "Commercial ratings are going to be the new big thing," he said. "It has huge implications for the TV industry, based on return on investment and return on equity."
http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=110363

* Shaw: ABC Ready to Sell Now Using Commercial Ratings
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