IF the different ways to watch television could be likened to a TV dinner, the TV set is still the Salisbury steak or fried chicken main course. (Or perhaps the turkey.) But the vegetables, mashed potatoes and desserts — that is, watching TV online or on mobile devices, and discussing TV shows with friends in social media like Facebook and Twitter — are becoming bigger parts of the meal.
That new approach to how people consume TV — and how advertisers buy commercial time on programs — has been a major subject of discussion during the upfront week in New York. The event derives its name from the efforts by TV executives to sell commercials before the start of the new season.
One broadcast network, CW, is devoting its promotional campaign for the 2009-10 season to the changing nature of TV viewership. The campaign will carry the theme “TV to talk about,” a line that will change from ad to ad to include iterations like “TV to text about,” “blog about,” “chat about” and even “tweet about.”
“The bulk of people do watch on TV, but they talk about it online and on their phones, and in instant messaging,” said Rick Haskins, executive vice president for marketing and brand strategy at CW, which is owned by the CBS Corporation and Time Warner.
The theme of the campaign also reflects how successful CW executives have been in scheduling series like “Gossip Girl” that generate some of the most pervasive buzz for any new prime-time shows — even if not they do not attract commensurately outsize audiences.
To help develop the campaign, the network, which presents its 2009-10 lineup to advertisers and agencies Thursday morning, sent researchers into viewers’ homes last fall, Mr. Haskins said, in markets like St. Louis, Atlanta and Kansas City, Mo.
“It was fascinating to me,” he recalled, describing one aha! moment: “Two people on a couch would be watching ‘Gossip Girl’ and they’d be texting each other about the show. I’d say, ‘You’re sitting next to each other.’ And they’d say, ‘Who’s that old guy?’ ”
The campaign was created internally at CW and with the help of two agencies, 72 and Sunny and Troika. The ads, scheduled to start appearing in September, will feature returning CW series like “Gossip Girl,” “One Tree Hill,” “90210” and “Supernatural” as well as newcomers like “The Beautiful Life.”
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