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sales@spotsndots.com Copyright 2018.The Daily News of TV Sales Wednesday, February 28, 2018

ADVERTISER NEWS After Papa John’s reported comparable sales dropped 3.9% in the fourth quarter, the company also announced an end to its NFL Football sponsorship deal. Back in November, the chain’s founder, John Schnatter blamed the NFL’s “poor leadership” and declining ratings following players’ protests on the chain’s subpar sale... Just in time for the release of the Incredibles movie sequel, a new deal will bring Disney back to McDonald’s Happy Meals. The two parted ways at a time when childhood obesity rates were rising and there was widespread concern over

children’s meals at fast food restaurants....CNBC says Mattress start-up Casper has opened its first permanent store in the heart of downtown New York, on the outskirts of popular shopping destination SoHo. The opening comes as traditional mattress sellers, such as Mattress Firm, are in the midst of closing hundreds of stores....Meanwhile, Harry’s is getting out of the brick and mortar biz, letting the lease on its Corner Shop in SoHo expire on March 2, says Retaildive.com. But they’re not getting out of retail; Harry’s started a razor

subscription service in 2016 and later began selling its through Target and more recently, Walmart too....Macy’s same-store sales were up 3 percent in January, as the company had fresher merchandise in stores and less carryover from the holidays. Macy’s reported net income of $1.33 billion, or $4.31 a share, compared with $475 million, or $1.54 per share, a year ago....Dillard’s reports fourth quarter net sales of $2.06 billion, up 6% from the year-ago period, while total merchandise sales were up 7%. Comparable sales were up 3% in the quarter. Excluding a one time tax benefit, earnings per share were $2.82, well higher than the FactSet consensus of $1.82 cited by MarketWatch. Sales were $10 million higher than estimates. For the full fiscal year, Dillard’s posted net sales of $6.26 billion, a slight increase over the previous year....Amazon is buying Ring, a startup that makes doorbells and video security cameras, for more than $1 billion, according to Reuters. Ring is Amazon’s latest move in expanding into the heated “smart-homes” market, where gadgets control homes with a few spoken words. Amazon has positioned its Echo smart speaker, powered by its Alexa voice assistant, as a smart homes device....Online education company Udacity, which offers courses in high-tech subjects such as machine learning, said it more than doubled its annual revenue last year and added about 34,000 new students to its online degree programs.... Dick’s Sporting Goods will stop selling assault rifles like the AR-15, the weapon that was used in the Parkland school shooting that killed 17 people. The company has also announced that it will limit all gun sales to people at least 21 years old.

WHAT’S TV? IT’S NOT AN EASY QUESTION TO ANSWERAND THAT COULD MEAN MISSED RATINGS What’s TV used to be a pretty straight-forward question, but with a variety of broadcast, cable and online platforms to pick from, that’s not the case any longer. So research pros are beginning to look closer at the terminology the industry is using when communicating with viewers to make sure they’re both speaking the same language, as well as ensure TV isn’t missing the credit it deserves. The Council For Research Excellence (CRE) commissioned a study to figure out what TV is to Americans. It found that while most people are able to differentiate between TV, cable and streaming, it’s not how they’re talking about them. “Consumers rarely referred to those directly, rather they talk about the content they’re viewing,” said Kate Novak, associate director of the consumer research company The Sound, which was hired by CRE to do the study. When people spoke of “watching TV” they meant broadcast or cable. And when researchers said “streaming” viewers got it—but there wasn’t a single person that used the term. “When they’re talking to friends or family about what they’re watching, there’s not really a benefit to saying they’re watching something on Netflix or through their cable box,” Novak told a CRE webinar on Tuesday. “They put the priority on the content that they’re accessing.” They’re also brand-specific and are more likely to say Roku than an Over-The-Top or OTT service. “I do believe there is often times a disconnect between how consumers are using the language and how the industry itself is...speaking,” agreed Janet Gallent, SVP of consumer insights at NBC. Novak said multitasking has also become so commonplace that when they showed people photos of someone viewing TV content while doing something else, it wasn’t always consciously recognized. She also noted that older viewers are more likely understand what broadcast, cable and prime time mean than younger streaming-focused viewers. Why does it matter? Novak said in the future broadcasters need to be very descriptive in how they define watching behavior otherwise the industry could under-report actual consumption of broadcast or cable programming. The fate of the Council For Research Excellence is now an “open question” according to director Richard Zackon. He said members will meet March 22 to consider CRE’s options after Nielsen informed the 13-year old group it would no longer be its backer as of Jan. 1. “It’s not clear that we’ll be working with Nielsen or not,” he said. “The only thing that we know is that Nielsen will not be the sole funder—or if it will be any sort of funder of the CRE.”

PAGE 2 The Daily News of TV Sales @ www.spotsndots.com

NETWORK NEWS Michael De Luca and Jennifer Todd, the producers of the 90th Annual Oscars telecast on ABC, have announced additional presenters for the Sunday night ceremony. The list includes Sandra Bullock, Emily Blunt, Dave Chappelle, Eugenio Derbez, Ansel Elgort, Jane Fonda, Jodie Foster, Eiza Gonzalez, Ashely Judd, Nichole Kidman, Matthew McConaughey, Helen Mirren, Rita Moreno, Lupita Nyong’o, and Christopher Walken. The Academy Awards will be broadcast live on ABC Sunday night……Fox has announced that Callie Hernandez (Graves) will take the female lead role in the musical drama pilot Mixtape. Hernandez will join the previously announced Madeline Stowe in the pilot from Smash showrunner Josh Safran and Annapurna Television. Hernandez will pay Nellie, whose job in admissions at an art college and relationship with an up-and-coming musician have derailed her own dreams of becoming an artist……. The female lead in the ABC drama pilot Salvage will be taken by Charity Wakefield of Bounty Hunters. She will play the beautiful daughter of a rural Florida town’s richest man who arrives back home newly single and under mysterious circumstances. Salvage revolves around an ex-cop who moves back to his home and is drawn into an investigation of a murder linked to the sunken treasure of a lost Spanish galleon…… In other casting news, CBS has Emmy-winner Michael Chiklis set as the male lead in the drama pilot Murder. Chiklis’ character is a veteran detective in the NYPD whose deep empathy and sharp instincts have been the foundation of an exemplary career. His unusual style is disrupted by his new partner, and outspoken rookie detective played by Teyonah Parris. Chiklis won an Emmy Award and a Golden Globe Award for his signature role as corrupt LAPD detective Vic Mackey on FX’s The Shield……Meanwhile, Sarayu Blue of the CW’s No Tomorrow has been tapped to play the lead in NBC’s half-hour single-camera comedy form Aseem Batra, Amy Poehler, Julie Anne Robinson and Universal TV. Paul Adelstein (Scandal) will play opposite Blue in the male lead role. The project is based on Orli Auslander’s book I Feel Bad: All Day. Every Day. About Everything……The Fox untitled drama pilot based on the best-selling book Gone Baby Gone by Dennis Lehane will have Joseph Morgan (The Originals) in the male lead role. The project is from 20th Century Fox TV and Miramax, which was behind the 2007 movie adaptation directed by Ben Affleck……ABC’s new drama Deception is set to premiere on Sunday, March 11th at 10:01 PM (ET). The series features a superstar magician whose career has been ruined by scandal. He has only one place to turn to practice his art of deception, influence, and illusion – The FBI. He starts using every trick in the book and inventing new ones to help the government catch the world’s most elusive criminals. Deception stars Jack Cutmore-Scott in the lead role, Ilfenesh Hadera, Lenora Crichlow, Amaury Nolasco, Justin Chon, Laila Robins, and Vinnie Jones are also in the cast……Fox has officially canceled Wayward Pines after two seasons. The mystery serial from filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan aired in the summer of 2015 and 2016 and hasn’t been on the air for nearly 18 months.

AVAILS Meredith Local Media group has a great opportunity for an Account Executive in one of the most dynamic markets in the country. Fox Carolina serves the Greenville, Spartanburg, Asheville in the 38th DMA. Greenville is one of the fastest growing cities in the country with a thriving downtown, a manufacturing base that includes BMW and Michelin. Fox Carolina features a strong news and digital presence and we are home to the Carolina Panthers on Fox. CLICK HERE for detail or to apply. Hearst Television in Tampa, WMOR-TV and This TV

Tampa Bay, has an opportunity for highly motivated, driven National Sales Manager. A minimum of four years’ experience, preferred, with a proven track record in share growth and revenue generation. Must be creative and have the ability to establish non-traditional revenue both locally and nationally. Five years broadcast sales management experience and college degree preferred. CLICK HERE to apply. EOE

KNSD in San Diego is seeking a Traffic Coordinator. This person will be responsible for monitoring receipt of agency materials and agency traffic instructions from multiple sources. This position also confirms approval from sales management for all incoming order rates, ratings and programming to minimize last minute changes. Minimum 1 year traffic experience and in a sales support capacity and a high level of attention to detail, accuracy and speed required. CLICK HERE for details or to apply now. EOE. Account Executive: ABC6 in Providence, Rhode Island is looking for an experienced media sales professional with a minimum of 2 years’ experience. We need an enthusiastic, accountable individual to work with local and regional clients– at the agency and local levels to develop marketing plans utilizing all station products. This position is a great opportunity for someone looking for a move into a top 60 market. Send resume to: cantonio@abc6.com. No phone calls please. WLNE-TV / ABC6 is an EOE.

THIS AND THAT Nutrisystem shares plummeted as much as 27 percent in extended trading after its latest diet-season marketing campaign stumbled, hurting the weight-loss giant’s sales and profit outlook. The company expects earnings of 3 cents to 8 cents a share in Q1, well below the 28-cent average estimate of analysts. Weight-loss programs like Nutrisystem are heavily dependent on New Year’s resolutions to lock in customers. This time around, the company’s marketing message didn’t resonate, according to Ad Age... Comcast on Tuesday made an unsolicited bid to buy Sky, the UK satellite TV provider, for $31 billion. The offer challenges Disney’s deal in December to buy film and international assets from Twenty-first Century Fox — including its Sky stake — for $52 billion in stock. Fox responded to Comcast’s bid by saying it’s sticking to its offer of December 2016 to buy Sky’s remaining shares. Its proposed take-out price is 14 percent lower than Comcast’s bid.

2/28/2018

Seth Meyers

Neiman Marcus is selling a Dolce & Gabbana toaster for $600. Or, for the same results, just buy a regular toaster and put $600 in it.

The Daily News of TV Sales @ www.spotsndots.com PAGE 3

THE OLYMPIC’S HAD SOCIAL MEDIA TALKING Even though viewership of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang were below Sochi’s numbers, the games were apparently a hot topic on Facebook. The social network revealed some of the most-talked-about topics during the 17 days of the games. According to Recode, Shaun White came in as the “most-talked-about athlete;” while figure skating and curling tied as the “most-talked-about sports;” and a post about the women athletes from Africa was the “most-liked’ post.” Facebook didn’t share how many people liked those things, or the total audience or engagement around posts relating to the Olympics, causing some analysts to wonder if those numbers were down significantly over past events. Facebook has shared those numbers for events in the past, including the World Cup, the Rio Olympics, the Sochi Olympics, and the Super Bowl. Behind Shaun White, the most-talked-about athletes during the 2018 Winter Olympics were Red Gerard, Adam Rippon, Chloe Kim, Scott Moir, Tessa Virtue, Martin Fourcade, Lindsey Vonn, Nathan Chen, and Mikaela Shiffrin.

GROWTH SLOWS FOR APPAREL SALES Millennials, athleisure and e-commerce continue to be the brightest spots in the U.S. apparel industry, though the NPD Group reports that they lost some of their intensity in 2017. This slowed momentum among the industry’s key sales drivers, combined with declines in other segments, resulted in $215 billion in U.S. apparel sales in 2017, a 2% decline in from 2016. “The rapid pace of change in Millennial consumption is one major change that points back to the importance of evolv-ing consumer segmentation,” said Marshal Cohen of NPD. “The future of the apparel business depends on manufac-turers and retailers refocusing on the current needs of each critical consumer segment.” Millennials had the highest apparel growth rate of all gen-erations last year at 4%, representing $2 billion in incre-mental sales. However, even the growth among this pow-erhouse has slowed from the double-digit increases seen over the past two years. Despite the slower growth rate among both Millennials and Gen Xers, they were the only generations with increases in apparel dollar sales in 2017. Non-activewear sales declined while activewear apparel continued on its growth trajectory in 2017, although not making as steep a rise as in past years—dollar sales in-creased 2% to $48 billion. Sales of both men’s and wom-en’s activewear grew, but women’s supplied much of the energy behind “athleisure,” reaching $21.9 billion in sales with a 4% increase over 2016. E-commerce also remains a driving force at retail as in-store apparel sales have declined, but brick-and-mortar still represents more than three-quarters of annual industry dol-lars. E-commerce has had a relatively slow progression in apparel compared to other industries, from 16% of sales in 2014 to 21% in 2017. But online apparel sales grew just 4% in 2017.

TV OR STREAMING? FOOTBALLS ‘S FUTURE CBS Chief Executive Leslie Moonves said on Tuesday that the network might find itself bidding against deep-pocketed tech giants for NFL rights when its contract with the league ends in five years. Google’s YouTube, Amazon and other tech players making major investments in entertainment programming were absent from the bargaining table when 21st Century Fox outbid CBS for rights to Thursday Night Football. But Moonves predicts the day is coming when they look to secure rights to stream professional football games.

“Obviously the tech players are going to be part of it,” Moonves said in remarks at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in San Francisco, reported by the NY Post. Moonves said the NFL still believes in the power of broadcast television — indeed, the Super Bowl never has aired on a cable network (which would limit the potential audience to subscribers). But he predicts the NFL will look for dual revenue streams in the future, which

implies selling streaming rights to NFL games. Moonves revisited his reason for bowing out of the Thursday night NFL sweepstakes, saying the package simply got too expensive. He said the network instead will rely on its popular Thursday night comedy lineup of The Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon, even as it reinvests the savings in new programming.

DONE DEALS MOR TV, Tampa, announced that James Higelin has been promoted to local sales manager, effective immediately. Higelin joined MOR in 2017 as national sales manager,

moving over from Cox Media Group’s WFOX 30/WJAX 47 in Jacksonville, where he was an account executive. Prior to WFOX/WJAX, Higelin worked as a national sales account executive for HRP in New York. Previous positions include account executive roles with

Petry Media and Zenith.

2/28/2018

FunnyTweeter.com

Moderation is good as long as you don’t overdo it.

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