JackMyers Think Tank

2009/2010 Upfront Finally Breaks in Last Gasp for Traditional Business Models

With Barry Diller and John Malone absurdly offering opinions on Twitter's business viability at Herb Allen's annual Sun Valley media retreat, the most relevant comment was from American Express CEO Ken Chenault, who suggested he saw no "green shoots" in the nation's economy.

Pay Attention, Mr. & Ms. Corporate Procurement Officer

Jack, I read with interest today your article on The Upfront That Could Have Been or some such thing in which you correctly stated that advertisers are so fixated on cost that they have lost sight of the much more relevant value side of the equation.

The Upfront That Could Have Been

As the broadcast network television Upfront moves forward quietly and with little momentum, it's becoming clear that procurement and financial officers of major marketers are dictating the pricing decisions and driving Upfront purchasing models.

Will CBS Be the Wal-Mart of Media?

Across all segments of the economy -- from auto dealerships, to retail shelves, to entertainment venues, to sports events, and to media – we are experiencing an inversion of the supply/demand equation that has spurred economic growth for the last six decades, a period during which demand has exceeded supply in most sectors of the mass economy. And while most economists and investors believe consumer spending will be re-accelerated through government intervention in the economic system, consumers have become far more sophisticated in seeking out low-cost providers in almost every business category, resulting in downward pricing pressure even as individual consumption increases.

Can Media Regain Control Over Ad Pricing and Value?

It's called value. Marketers have lost their sense of advertising and media value. The drive toward increased media commoditization, which has reduced the cost basis of most major media in the past few years, is more than a cost-reduction strategy by advertisers.

Flu Attacks Media Business: Now is the Time to Act

Scientists recently discovered a process in the body's immune system called "anergy." It has commonly been believed that, when an invading virus attacks the body, white blood cells race to the point of invasion, surrounding and destroying the invading virus. It is now known that although the white blood cells charge to the point of incursion, they do not immediately attack.

President Obama's First 100 Days as Experienced from Norway

On the 100th day anniversary of Barack Obama's presidency last week, I was speaking to 1,000 media, agency and marketing executives at "Gulltaggen," the Nordic Countries Interactive Advertising Bureau annual conference in Oslo, Norway. Unlike here in the U.S., where rabid Republican partisanship borders on anti-Americanism (and often seems to cross that border), among Norwegians the enthusiasm and support for President Obama is unrestricted and seemingly universal. My previous visit to Europe was before the November election and Europeans truly didn't believe Obama could be elected.

Media Freight Train Rumbles Along

The media and advertising communities are undergoing a subtle transformation and a handful of shifts. The single most notable change is the universal acceptance that the business models no longer work. There are, surprisingly, still a few executives who believe the economic fundamentals of the media industry as a whole are sound.

Upfront Is Not a Reliable Indicator of Network TV Economic Vitality

Again this year I am urging my colleagues in the press, on Wall Street, at media agencies and at networks to avoid reporting on Upfront investments. For the past few years I have steadily reduced my coverage of the national television Upfront market based on my conviction that press coverage does a disservice to both network TV advertising buyers and sellers.

"Battlestar Galactica" Finale Resonates Culturally and Politically. There Must Be Some Kind of Way Out of Here.

The most politically engaging, culturally relevant, socially entertaining and spiritually rewarding experience I had this past week was watching the two-hour finale of Battlestar Galactica, at a special press screening hosted by Sci Fi network, which announced yesterday it would soon be called Syfy.