A promise of performance will always be a hostage to fortune - even
when that promise is given by everyone’s favourite media boss, Richard
Eyre. When Eyre took up his position as ITV chief executive last year,
he was hailed as the embodiment of both glasnost and perestroika within
a network desperately trying to modernise.
Part of the new openness involved going beyond traditionally vague
promises that ITV would try harder. Back in January, he committed
himself to some numbers - ITV’s share of peak-time audiences would, he
stated, move up to 40 per cent by 2000. The market was impressed -
though cynics might have argued that, desperate times requiring
desperate measures, Eyre needed to pull something special out of the
hat. Would this particular rabbit come back to haunt him?
The answer seems to be yes. Speaking at a Royal Television Society
dinner last week, he seemed to be buying himself a get-out clause. He
stated that if he was forced to drop his plans to do away with News at
Ten, then the network might find it impossible to deliver his ratings
promises.
Bad timing, you might think, given that we are about to enter the yearly
autumn negotiation season and ITV made its flagship 1999 presentation to
advertisers and agencies this week. Airtime buyers will use any stick
they can to beat the backs of sales points, especially ITV sales
points.
So will this year’s negotiations include potentially punitive clauses
relating to peak-time ratings performance?
Of course, sales points will attempt to ignore the issue. Or hedge their
bets by arguing that Eyre’s ex cathedra pronouncements are all to be
taken as metaphorical rather than statements of fact. Won’t they? Well,
not at TSMS.
Its chief executive, Jerry Hill, maintains that the peak-time promise
serves to put a line in the sand - one that it is very important for
agencies to take on board. ’Audience shares this year have confounded
recent trends, with ITV in particular having altered course. Next year
it aims to do even better. If planners do not evaluate and respond to
these improvements and its planned output for next year then their
clients will miss out on the benefits.’
And clients have been vociferous in their demands for better audience
performance, especially during peak. That’s why Eyre had to commit
himself in the first place. It would be ironic if, as happened during
the World Cup, they were to lose faith at exactly the wrong moment.
Hill adds: ’The significance of the peak-time commitment is that we have
conclusive proof that high-volume audiences sell more of the
advertiser’s product and provide a genuine competitive advantage for
those who invest.
This will be even more important to clients next year given the
introduction of immeasurable and fragmented audiences and a more
demanding business climate.’
Some observers point out that there’s a related issue here. For the past
couple of years, ITV has been trying to sell its peak-time inventory at
a premium. Is it likely to succeed if it tries to increase that
premium?
Some agencies are worried that this increasing obsession with peak-time
means ITV will take its eye off the ball in other areas of the schedule
- could its average ratings share actually go down? Would that
matter?
Of course it would. Paul Parashar, broadcast director at New PHD,
states: ’Whatever happens, the key thing is for ITV to demonstrate its
desire to maintain its share of audience against Channel 4, Channel 5
and satellite.
The danger with peak-time targets is that they might believe that, if
they get them right, the rest naturally follows.
’Of course, peak-time is ITV’s unique strength and advertisers are
interested.
And yes, because ITV has made an issue of it and has been so categorical
about the 40 per cent figure, I think that some buyers will want to
build it into their negotiations - just as ITV makes categorical demands
about share of advertising budgets.’
Mick Perry, the vice-chairman of Universal McCann, agrees that the
peak-time commitment will not necessarily be the most important figure
used in negotiations. ’It is understandable that ITV will want to make
peak-time the important battleground. That is where the network can
exert some control,’ he points out. ’But share of total commercial
impacts will remain the currency for most buyers. Admittedly, that
figure can hide a multitude of sins and peak is actually what most
advertisers are interested in.’
Will ITV be able to command an increasing premium for peak-time? Perry
admits it’s already happening. ’ITV only delivers 50 per cent of all
commercial impacts, but it takes 60 per cent of TV revenue - and the
margin is wider in peak, which commands higher prices than off-peak,’ he
says.
Chris Boothby, the broadcast director of BBJ Media Services, concedes
that ITV has had a good year. But it was helped by a change in ratings
research methodology and the extraordinary audience boost that came from
the World Cup. The underlying trends, he implies, are less
promising.
He states: ’ITV is still losing audience share to its commercial
competitors and, with some younger audiences, the network’s share has
dropped below 50 per cent, threatening its position as a ’must have’ on
certain schedules.
We all want a strong ITV, however, and recognise that ITV peak does
offer unique programming and audiences which will deliver effective
coverage and environment. It is important, therefore, that Richard Eyre
and his team keep the focus on delivering a strong peak product.’
Boothby argues that the News at Ten issue shouldn’t dominate strategic
thinking within the network. He even wonders whether, if it gets its way
and is allowed to move the bulletin, the network could actually fill the
gap, especially when it comes to delivering key ABC1 audiences.
And he warns: ’During next year’s deals, ITV must be able to offer a
realistic and equitable response to a fair and equitable investment. ITV
does still have a valuable and sought-after product but so,
increasingly, do its competitors.’
