As TV shows go online, networks try to adapt ads

AS TV SHOWS GO ONLINE, NETWORKS TRY TO ADAPT ADS
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Alana Semuels]
With the personal computer replacing the television set for a growing number of Americans, the 30-second spot, along with most conventional TV advertising, is under pressure. For years, people have been able to circumvent TV ads with digital video recorders, but that requires some effort. There are much easier opportunities for ad-avoiding multitasking at the click of a mouse, which is why the networks are experimenting with a mix of alternative formats for online promotional breaks — including having none at all. Advertisers are filling online ad time in ways they can't on TV, with interactive videos and competitions. For a campaign for Florida Citrus, the Dallas-based agency Richards Group created a "flu or false" health quiz and a game set in a maze whose walls were contaminated with germs. The games had several levels, the idea being that once viewers started playing they'd be hooked and would stay with it for a lot longer than 30 seconds, going back to the TV show later. Agency research showed that in many cases, people did just that, underscoring a point often made by Joseph Jaffe, author of "Life After the 30-Second Spot." "At the end of the day, why would anybody of sane mind and body sit through a commercial?" said Jaffe, whose book was published in 2005. Online advertisers stand a chance of keeping an audience's attention, he said, by making commercials that don't appear to be commercials.
http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-webspots5jul05,1,2935...
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