The steady rise of independent companies in the syndicated television industry has prompted Creative Television Marketing, which packages advertising-time deals, to launch a new division dedicated to national ad sales.
The company has signed Telco Productions, which produces and distributes “Missing,” “Dog Tales” and “Animal Rescue,” as the new service’s first client.
It’s an expansion for Creative Television Marketing, which has been selling 10-second national spots, close-captioning sponsorships, Web-site ads and travel and promotional sponsorships for more than 10 years.
Independent syndication companies are exploiting programming niches that the largest players in the industry are leaving aside.
Most of the smaller companies’ deals are done on a barter basis, where stations give them a chunk of advertising time in exchange for the right to air the program. Creative Television Marketing is helping the smaller syndicators package that advertising time and convert it to revenue.
“More and more often as we look at the marketplace, we see companies like Telco, which don’t have a lot of choices anymore for their barter,” said Richard Storrs, president of CTM. “Because we are meeting with agencies and have great relationships with commercial advertising, we thought this would be a natural extension for us while also servicing a growing need in the industry, especially with Tribune shutting down its operations.”
The new service takes CTM into new territory, dealing in 15- and 30-second spots. The company, which has grown into a $25 million-$27 million a year operation, boasts a client list that includes CBS Television Distribution, CNN, Atlas Worldwide and CF Entertainment, Mr. Storrs says. CTM represents more than two dozen programs including “Judge Judy” and “Judge Joe Brown.”
Telco, which is run by company president Alex Paen, had been searching for another company to represent its barter sales after prior partner Tribune shuttered its distribution operations. Enter CTM, which already worked with Telco on other programs.
“Tribune did a great job for me, but once they ended their business, I had to look elsewhere,” Mr. Paen said. “Unfortunately, there aren’t too many other companies out there that are fighting the good fight for the little guy and looking at ways to both find new sources of revenue as well as reduce costs. Richard had already done a fantastic job for me with my [10-second spots], and with his multitude of relationships in the advertising industry, we can easily transition from there.”
Telco is bringing back all three of its shows for the fall; each is now renewed in more than 70% of the country.