Dauman Encouraged By Kids' Upfront
Network Cutting Attractive Deals
Mike Farrell -- Multichannel News, 3/18/2009 10:05:11 PM
Cable TV Upfronts 2009: Complete Coverage From Multichannel News
Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman told an audience at an industry conference March 18 that despite the recession, the advertising market is beginning to show signs of recovery.
Dauman, speaking at the McGraw-Hill Media Summit conference in New York was encouraged by a kids' upfront he said was "extremely well received."
"We're already cutting some very attractive deals," Dauman said adding that CPMs were "still strong."
Although he couched his remarks by saying that it was still early in the upfront presentation schedule - kids is usually first out of the gate followed by cable and broadcast - he said the strength of Viacom's marquee brands like Nickelodeon, MTV and Comedy Central are must-have properties for advertisers.
"If you're launching a video game, you have to be on our air," Dauman said. "The problem is when you have highly stressed companies that need to advertise but can't."
But even in that scenario, Dauman said that Viacom's brands have an advantage because advertisers will be more selective in the outlets they choose.
"It is a lot more focused buy with marketers that want to be with brands they trust and the outlets they trust," Dauman said. "We are fortunate in that we are not dependent on the automotive and financial services companies We are going to be impacted on the volume side, but we will be less impacted than these other broad categories of advertisers."
Dauman also addressed recent battles with distributors - including the recent spat with Time Warner Cable. While he said that relations with distributors can sometimes get heated, he said that Viacom simply want to get compensated for the value they provide to cable and satellite TV companies. He estimated that Viacom's affiliate fee revenue is rising at a 10% clip.
But that's a bargain, given that Viacom networks account for about 20% of the viewership f ad-supported cable but their fees represent between 8% and 9% of the total affiliate fees and average cable operator pays. And he said that Viacom networks also account for about 35% to 40% of free video on demand streams.
While that is mainly due to the fact that Viacom viewers tend to skew young and are more apt to use new technology, Dauman said that one thing those viewers aren't doing is watching cable programming exclusively online.
"We're not seeing it," Dauman said of the so-called cord-cutting phenomenon. "And our subscriber base is growing People tend to want to keep their TV connections."
And as far as cable operators who fear programmers will put most of their content online for free while they still pay high carriage fees, Dauman said that Viacom is respectful of its distribution relationships.
"We do not put the entirety of our programming online day and date," Dauman said. "Our industry has lived on windowing - we test, we experiment."
He pointed to MTV's The Hills, which has an online site dedicated to the program where fans can interact, chat and view material that has never been aired. Despite that free content ratings for the show continue to grow.
Viacom: Recovery Signs?
03/22/2009Viacom's Dauman: Ad Market Stabilizing
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