FOX TO SAVE PROMOTION MONEY FOR AFTER OLYMPICS
PASADENA -- Huge viewer turnout expected for Salt Lake City Winter Olympics prompted Fox to withdraw significant co- op money from affiliates for Feb. advertising. Speaking to TV critics here, Sandy Grushow, chmn. of Fox TV News Group, admitted: “It’s been a very challenging year economically for all networks and the same is true obviously for local stations and station groups. And we have had some discussions about whether or not” spending significant money on promotion during Olympics “was the most sensible way to spend our collective dollars.”
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“Clearly, most of the affiliates are going to be throwing the book out the window and frankly any advertiser that pays rates on a going forward basis based on the ratings coming out of February deserves exactly what they get because it’s going to be completely meaningless,” Grushow said: “We will try to fight as best we can but we're about to see some pretty eye-popping numbers on the Olympics and I'm not sure that spending another $15 million on the radio would make much of a difference. So ultimately together we decided to save our money for another point in time.”
Economic impact of sluggish ad market coupled with terrorist attacks was significant for network. Grushow also cited concern that “a post 911 nation” would have different viewing habits “appears valid… judging from the diminished returns on a number of reality series across the networks.” However, networks still needed to be fueled by product, he said. “While many of those moves have created headlines, and rightfully so,” Grushow said, referring to network development of low-cost dramas, “the fact remains that business considerations cannot lead a creative company, they can only help steer it from trouble… If you want the support of advertisers, audiences and critics, your content really has to remain king.”
Programming decisions begun 2 years finally have begun to bear financial fruit, Grushow said: “We increased for advertisers the value of the Fox viewing audience by achieving a better balance on our schedule between reality formats and scripted comedies and dramas. Madison Avenue is taking notice that Fox has begun to deliver to them a far more valuable audience than ever before.”
Fox will shy away from liquor ads, at least for time being, Grushow said: “It’s one of those hypotheticals… I can’t tell you why and I can’t tell you under what circumstances and I can’t tell you when but we're certainly not going to rule out the possibility that at some point we might start to accept them. But right now we don’t think it’s appropriate, so it’s our policy not to accept them.”