TVB Forward Conference ’12

In his remarks kicking off the TVB Forward conference Wednesday, TVB President Steve Lanzano challenged a recent story by Henry Blodget, the disgraced research analyst-turned blogger, who declared that the TV industry was headed toward collapse.

Citi researcher Itay Michaeli warns that a number of factors are holding back a total rebound in automotive sales. “The recovery should not be taken for granted. It’s not a matter of when. It’s a matter of if.”

The Obama and Romney campaigns “are spending incredible amounts of money to reach an incredibly small amount of people,” says Kantar’s Kenneth Goldstein.

Wells Fargo Securities media expert Marci Ryvicker says she’s bullish on the staying power of broadcast television, which stands apart from other media by offering the local news and programming viewers want. “I don’t think it’s replaceable.”

Bill Koenigsburg, president-CEO of Horizon Media, says stations need to know which shows are “most relevant and most important when making product placement purchases,” he says. “If you can figure that out than you’re building in much bigger value proposition to your inventory.”

A new report, released at the TVB Forward Conference ’12, shows that news on TV stations in the top markets dwarf the five major cable news networks’ national and in-market audiences.