The Broadcasters Foundation of America will present six Ward L. Quaal Leadership Awards on April 9 at the group’s annual breakfast at the NAB Show in Las Vegas.
Falling National Spot Puts The Hurt On Katz
Double-digit declines in national spot since 2007, coupled with station consolidation, are the new reality for independent rep firms. Clear Channel-owned Katz Television Group recently whacked two top execs, Jim Beloyianis and Michael Spiesman; laid off about 10 other employees and closed offices in Tampa, Miami, St. Louis, Denver and Seattle. Those are cost-saving actions that Co-President Leo MacCourtney says will have a big impact as it moves to find new spot advertisers and get more orders from existing ones. It would be encouraging to know that the reps are working shoulder-to-shoulder with TVB in convincing advertisers and their agencies that spot is their best and most efficient buy.
Leo MacCourtney and Craig Broitman, heads of the rep’s Eagle and Milliennium units, will take over for Beloyianis as co-presidents.
Discounting Political, ’11 Spot Rev To Rise 4%
According to TVNewsCheck‘s exclusive survey of sales execs and media prognosticators, total TV spot revenue will drop 6% compared to last year, but when the biennial political dollars are factored out, so-called core spot will grow 4%, up on one percentage point from our original forecast last September. A stand-out first quarter is responsible for the core improvement. But the Japanese crises’ effect on the auto category is cause for concern.
Rep Firms Respond To Growing Challenges
Their station clients are grumbling and buying agencies are insisting that spot TV can be bought and sold like any other commodity. But the three survivng indie rep firms — Katz, Cox and Petry — are undaunted. In the face of multiple challenges, they are reinventing themselves confident that they can continue to prove their worth in the digital, multiplatform future.
