When we talk about television, there's the over-the-air TV station content and then there's everything else. Cable channels, premium cable channels (HBO, etc) and even recorded content--DVDs--are seen on the television. Consumers think of the TV as the appliance they view. Here are some thought points for you to consider about television viewing habits and preferences. Certainly you should think about your own habits but focus on understanding what is going on at a larger level. What will consumer changes mean to your job/career prospects?

Click here for the full article...read the tease paragraphs below.

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=113701

Here's a shortened link: http://predictingtv.notlong.com

Predicting TV's Future

Dave Morgan, Sep 17, 2009 03:17 PM

Television is undergoing an enormous technology-driven transformation. This fact is well known to all in the industry -- and is even obvious to all those who watch TV. Yesterday, I spoke about some of the effects of this transformation at the Collaborative Alliance, an important television industry group focused on "advanced TV" issues. The Alliance was created and run by Mitch Oscar of MPG (a regular contributor to MediaPost's TV Board). Here are some of the points that I made, based upon nine months of intensive analysis by my team at Simulmedia of anonymous, second-by-second set-top-box viewing data, representing millions of U.S. viewing households: TV has a "discovery" problem. The explosion of choices

Is Twitter Making A Mistake?

Now I will tell you right off the bat that I do not know jack squat about Twitter. I have talked with a few people who use it and have checked out Twitter's website for information, but I am still not confident in all it provides.

However, looking at an article that I found on Mediapost I wonder if Twitter is going to make a mistake? According to many, Twitter has been significantly growing for a couple of different reasons. First of all, when you go to search for someone, such as the NBA star Shaq, you know it's really him. Secondly, Twitter is not crammed with all that "media garbage". You know...all the gifts....farmtown....mafia wars....ADVERTISEMENTS! MySpace and Facebook are very popular but they are bombarded with all this "media garbage". This is one reason that Twitter seems to have been doing so well.

But this article talks about the possibilities of Twitter placing advertising on it's site. Is this going to be the beginning of a downfall for Twitter? Is this the first of more to come? I realize that you have to make money in order for your company to grow, but are we making a mistake? People like it how it is. Do we need to change it...what do you think?

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=113373

Places to go...

If you're going to work in media/mass comm/PR/entertainment/journalism/online content...whatever you want to call your future work area, you should begin to read about and understand the issues that surround your future career area.

Here are some sites that can link you to news and events about your field. This is not an exhaustive list...these are just a few of the places I go for content.

Browse the websites...or better still, subscribe to their daily or weekly emails.

TVNewsCheck

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/index.php

TVWeek

www.tvweek.com

BroadcastingandCable

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/

Billboard

www.billboard.com

Mediapost

http://www.mediapost.com/

NATPE (National Association of Television Programming Executives)

www.natpe.org AND

NATPE Video Nuze: http://natpe.org/natpe/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=286&Itemid=449

National Association of Broadcasters

www.nab.org

Advertising Age

http://adage.com/

Brand Week

http://www.brandweek.com/bw/index.jsp

Any major newspaper:

The New York Times

www.nytimes.com

The Los Angeles Times

www.latimes.com

The Wall Street Journal

www.wsjonline.com

(Some of the WSJ content is available only to subscribers.)

PC=TV???

The LATimes carries a short article today contrasting Nielsen's report on computer/online television consumption.

Here's the link: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-online-tv9-2009sep09,0,3144574.story

The article title asserts, "the PC is becoming the new TV" as more people watch content online.

The article data appears to be self-reported...people have to remember how often they watch.

What is interesting: nearly 25% of the respondents indicate they watch online TV. And, the sample includes about 10,000 households. The Conference Board is vague as to actual methodology--a real problem when journalists believe the survey results are "facts" instead of responses by a group of survey participants who were selected for participation by a less than transparent means--even if the Conference Board normally gets high marks for what they do.

The two biggest issues for me: the potential end of appointment viewing TV and the possibility that programs may break through network distribution routes to find audiences among online viewers.

Here's the full link for the Conference Board article...it's more interesting than the LATimes article.

http://www.conference-board.org/economics/consumerBarometer.cfm

More than 141 hours per month

You'll hear me talk a lot about the growth of new media distribution outlets....online video and even mobile video viewing. But, television is still king with 141 hours of viewing per person per month! The Nielsen Company's most recent viewership estimate puts online video viewing at an average of only 3 hours and 11 minutes per viewer. How does this compare with you? As you grow older, do you think your viewership habits will change? If so, will you watch more regular TV or do you expect regular TV to change to match the habits of today's 20 - 25 year old viewer?

Read the article here:

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=112844

OR here: http://141hours.notlong.com

Integrated advertising efforts...

It isn't enough to just air music on a radio station anymore. The competition for listeners and advertising dollars had led Clear Channel Radio (the largest group owner of radio stations in the U.S., with more than 800 stations) to launch an effort to sell advertisers a fully integrated media advertising plan.

Click here for the full article: http://www.clickz.com/3634852

In Depressed Radio Ad Market, Clear Channel Innovates with Integrated Approach

By Kate Kaye, ClickZ, Sep 1, 2009

Terrestrial radio hasn't exactly been synonymous with innovation, but industry behemoth Clear Channel could be changing that. When it comes to advertiser offerings, the national radio station network is dedicating significant resources to branching out its integrated media department. The department recently set up a location in New York to complement its original L.A. office, and boasts custom work for brands like Ford and McDonald's.

Radio ad revenues are poised to drop 15 percent in 2009 compared to last year, according to BIA Advisory Services. But Clear Channel appears to be dedicated to leveraging its broad on-air, online, and mobile presence to ensure it remains appealing to national advertisers that are shifting budget allocations away from traditional media.

Fear does not equal persuasion

Imagine being hired to produce a video to incite fear in the viewers? In Wales, the police department wanted a video that would encourage drivers--especially young drivers--not to text while driving. But, a simple "don't do this" message wasn't thought to be enough. And the result? There's doubt that a gruesome video can do enough to change behavior. See for yourself and think of how you could produce a better--more persuasive--message.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/01/technology/01distracted.html?th&emc=th