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‘5th Grader’ Tries to Outsmart Ad Skippers

Apr 26, 2009  •  Post A Comment

A rarity in syndication is arriving next season, as Twentieth Television’s “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” is making pod-busting commercial options available to stations.
Podbusters, the short bits of entertainment content sandwiched between commercials to frustrate ad-skipping via digital video recorder, already are a mainstay on network primetime. Now syndicators such as Twentieth are looking to podbusters to help keep viewers engaged in shows, boosting their value to stations.
Bells and whistles like podbusters can help sales as stations mull programming purchases on tightening budgets.
Twentieth is banking on a midday, afterschool play for “5th Grader,” and it’s lining up commercial pod-busting elements that will help localize advertising content.
Bob Cook, president and chief operating officer of Twentieth Television, said one of the ad pods during the show will feature a question and answer that could be customized by market. The question and answer will sandwich an advertisement from a specific sponsor.
For example, a question about how much pizza Americans eat annually could wrap around an advertisement for Pizza Hut or a local pizzeria, Mr. Cook said.
“The idea is to hold the audience because they want to see what the answer to the question is,” he said. “Hold the audience through the spot.”
Twentieth said local stations will be given priority for the pod-busting advertising inventory. If a station falls to sell the spots during a certain week or lacks the manpower to search for kids to ask questions, national spots will be provided.
Twentieth is stressing the flexibility of the spots, allowing stations to make the advertising as local as possible.
Mr. Cook said he is looking to DVR-proof “5th Grader” in some respects, although syndication hasn’t suffered from ad-skipping to the same extent that primetime broadcast TV has.
According to the Syndication Network Television Association, 86% of adults 18-49 watch syndicated programming live, compared with 59% watching primetime broadcast TV.
A family-friendly show such as “5th Grader” could bring in younger, more tech-savvy and DVR-adept viewers, making the pod-busting option appealing.
Mr. Cook said stations also are interested in other marketing options, such as a Jeff Foxworthy look-alike contest and tie-ins with local schools’ honor rolls.
Allowing for localized spots is one of the ways syndication is making its brands more compelling to local stations, said Mitch Burg, president of the Syndicated Network Television Association.
Shows such as Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution’s “TMZ” and CBS Television Distribution’s “Entertainment Tonight” give Web widgets and news teases to affiliates, helping add value to the programming.

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