Can Leno Be Saved? Let Me Program NBC!

The Jay Leno Show at 10 pm is a failure and NBC affiliates seems to agree. "'The handwriting is on the wall,' Alan Frank, who runs two NBC stations including the affiliate in Detroit, told the trade publication Broadcasting & Cable over the weekend." Affiliates have had enough and are dropping the show for local content. Heck David Letterman failed as a daytime talk show. It shows that success in one time period does not necessarily guarantee success in another time spot.

But there is a solution for NBC that brings affiliates back and saves Jay Leno. Move The Jay Leno Show to 10 PM on Saturday night, a night most recently used to showcase repeats from the week prior. As a one night a week variety show, Jay can focus on variety acts, comedy, and monologue. In fact, make it live to show that anything is possible. A greater lead in to news and perhaps to Saturday Night Live as well. Frankly, one show a week is enough for Jay. Think Ed Sullivan and Carol Burnett and design accordingly.

And what to do with 10 pm Monday through Friday? Well there is always Law and Order until new shows are ready to premiere. Other suggestions, bring back a good western and a good family drama, and a good guest filled episodic. Get back to the roots of good television. Otherwise, we can watch NBC continue to suffer.

Kindle Doing Great; Should E-Reader and Nook Worry?

Merry Christmas and Happy Hannukah, Kindle sales seem to be the stocking stuffer as other devices lose market share. "Kindle device and book sales will total $1.6 billion for 2010. That's 5% of Amazon's total sales." Sell the device and build a store to deliver content. Amazon is emulating the Apple App Store and taking advantage of changing trends. Can Barnes and Noble and Borders survive as they have been slower to adapt.

I currently don't own a Kindle and keep waiting for a device that provides color as well as black and white content, in an easy to hold, light, and nimble device. Perhaps my hesitancy reflects others that have not become early adopters. I do believe the company that delivers this device first will ultimately win the war. I expect the Kindle folks are working furiously to build such a device so the others better hurry.

Magazines Get Ready for Tablets

Take control of your distribution and perhaps the magazine business isn't too bad. Thanks to Benjamin Franklin and the printing press, newspapers and magazines have enjoyed a couple centuries of success. But new technology has threatened to derail it and the solution is painfully clear, adapt or die. Obviously, the switch over to a pure digital play is not realistic; rather, a measured approach, reaching new adopters and maintaining print subscription with current ones. Thus any subscription must give you both a digital and print copy of your content.

As we trend toward devices that best display printed content, current opportunities exist with iPhones, Blackberries, Kindles, and of course the computer. Newer devices are on the horizon. "Although publishers have not exactly been on the cutting edge of technology, two magazines — Esquire and GQ — have developed iPhone versions, while Wired and Sports Illustrated have made mockups of tablet versions of their print editions, months before any such tablets come to market. Publishers are using the opportunity to fix their business model, too."

And Apple is lurking in the background not ready yet to release their tablet design. I look forward to seeing what they have in store for us!

367 magazines shuttered in 2009

At first blush, this decline may seem disturbing, but not unexpected. Shifting a print model to a digital one is not an easy task. At the same time though, new magazines also emerged. "... 247 magazines launched during the same period. Regional titles composed the largest category on both sides of the ledger." Also it should be noted that the pace of closure appears to be slowing down; the strong survive, the weak unfortunately die. It demonstrates though that opportunity exist even among a downturn. Print magazines need to embrace new distribution models; content remains king and eager to be consumed. New ways to get to the consumer through e-readers and iPhones may just be their salvation.

Sirius Gets a Holiday Present; Thank You iPhone

Radio is meant to be enjoyed everywhere; not just in the car, but wherever, whenever. And Apple's iPhone just may be making it possible. "From now on, every Apple iPhone will feature Sirius XM’s full internet content offerings. It will also include Howard Stern as a part of the Pocket Tunes Radio application on Apple iTunes Store." Sounds too good to be true and certainly it would be a game changer for Sirius. Next to learn, what the subscription cost will be and how it will be sold.

Not much news yet on it, so hear is hoping that it true. And if it comes to iPhone, maybe other devices will be next. Content is meant to be mobile, both video and audio, what you want, when you want, where you want.

Consumers Want Their TV Where They Want, Too!

Need a study to prove the obvious. Well here it is. Viewers want their TV content - when they want and where they want. It is the three W's - what, when, where! "The study found that younger consumers and early adopters would be particularly interested in watching local TV on their gadgets, particularly local news and weather information." They don't want to pay for it either. Local means broadcast and means access to news, weather and sports.

More screens means more time to watch and that should be good news to advertisers. Measuring usage across multiple screens is still a hot topic, but knowing that the content is valued and watched should be good news to the local broadcaster. "Broadcasters have been making noises for years about offering mobile TV, which would allow consumers to watch local TV broadcasts on their phones and handheld devices, but the technology has been slow to get off the ground... Station owners say they want to use their airwaves to offer more digital channels, including new channels for mobile gadgets." Maybe this study will push them to more quickly change and adapt.

No More Cable Bills

Check out the article in today's New York Times by Nick Bilton. He and his wife weaned himself off a monthly cable bill by installing a mac mini, Xbox, and a wireless remote. With access to Boxee, Hulu, Netflix, and others, and the ability to watch free broadcast channels, as well as gaming, his entertainment is complete. Click below to access.

"Welcome to our living room. Take a seat, make yourself comfortable. Would you like to watch a movie, or the new “Family Guy” episode?"

U-verse TV Hits 2 Million Mark

Competition is fierce and the telco vs. cable battle lines will only get fiercer. As AT&T reaches 2 M cable customers and Verizon Fios heading toward 3 million, telco is taking a bigger and bigger chunk of the map. "As of the end of September, U-verse TV was available to about 15 million homes in 22 states. The U-verse fiber-to-the-node network currently passes more than 20 million homes." And because a telco gain tends to be a cable or satellite loss, every basic subscriber matters in the fight for dominance in the industry.

Telcos need cable subs to replace loss of phone and DSL customers. For cable, phone remains a win-win upgrade, as does hi speed connections. But if the base for cable declines, as recent quarter have indicated, eventually cable will have less customers to upsell phone and hi speed to. And so the marketing of these provider services, for telco, cable, and even satellite, should only get fiercer in 2010.

In addition, Comcast particularly has to be careful as it attempts to get its NBC Universal purchase approved by the FCC and FTC. Programming differentiation has played a big part. Sports is raising its ugly head today. Telco and satellite want access to the Comcast Sports Net and cable and telco want access to the NFL Sunday Ticket. At some point, programming differentiation will become a non-factor in marketing; rather, it will be about service and price. And hopefully, better pricing and service leads to a better customer experience.

How Much Is A Video Rental Worth

When DVDs hit the market, purchase price was nearly $20. The rental market seemed an ideal opportunity to watch the movies you like at a reasonable cost. Blockbuster zoomed in at one price point and Netflix came later with a more convenient distribution strategy, straight to the mailbox and no late fees. Yet the price point stayed strong despite competition. Until now. Redbox has turned the model upside down and in turn has caused problems, both for its competitors and for the Hollywood studios themselves. Rentals for a buck.

And it has financially hurt the movie industry. "A regional economic group estimates that dollar DVD rentals from Redbox and others has cost the entertainment industry $1 billion and that the "ripple effect" will cost hundreds of millions more." Hollywood is fighting back and studios are suing to prevent Redbox from renting at this low price. In return, Redbox is suing the studios for antitrust. A long battle will ensue.

Of course low prices mean that the consumer wins. Business competition ultimately leads to better pricing and service for the customer. Can movies still be made when revenues are cut. Perhaps the cost of movie-making is what is really at stake. Does it need to cost that much money to make them. Independent filmmaking has shown the low cost, high quality movies can still be made. And so the solution for studios, cut your production costs.

As the DVD rental business faces pricing issues, what will it mean for VOD. At prices nearly 5 times higher, will consumers switch from VOD consumption to Redbox as well? Should cable be worried and do they need to re-evaluate their pricing model and their marketing message?

Redbox is a game changer in the industry and the result of the upcoming legal battle could have broader implications. $1 to rent verse $5 to watch VOD; in today's economy, the answer is pretty obvious.