NATPE - National Association of Television Program Executives

NATPE News

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 22:23:34 +0100

http://natpenews.com

Peter Tortorici Interview

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 23:37:22 +0100

We're launching NATPE News' podcast with one of the television industry's most respected executives, Peter Tortorici. Peter has served as president of two broadcast networks -- CBS and Telemundo -- has developed some of television's biggest hit series, and today serves as CEO of GroupM Entertainment Worldwide. Peter speaks to NATPE News about the realities of developing brand-funded entertainment content.

Opportunities in Branded Entertainment

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 18:29:21 +0100

Doug Scott of OgilvyEntertainment talks Opportunities in Branded Entertainment

Washington Insight, April 2009

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 23:07:23 +0100

Genachowski Nominated to Chair FCC

With the White House’s late March nomination of Julius Genachowski to be the next FCC chairman, expect a love feast among Democratic Senators when Genachowski finally undergoes his confirmation hearing before the Senate Commerce Committee. NATPE's Washington Counsel Mickey Gardner tells us what we can expect from Genachowski's confirmation hearing…

The new chairman of the Senate Commerce committee, John D. Rockefeller IV, (D-WV) already has made it clear that he enthusiastically supports Julius Genachowski’s nomination to be FCC chair. A statement issued by a Rockefeller staffer said: "…Julius Genachowski has the public and private sector experience in telecommunications to reinvigorate the FCC. Senator Rockefeller commends President Obama for nominating someone who is completely committed to making technology accessible to all Americans and he looks forward to working on the many challenges that the commission and the committee will face in the months and years ahead.”

While it is no surprise that Senator Rockefeller is supportive of President Obama’s FCC Chairman designee, it is less certain whether Republicans on the Senate Commerce committee will support the Genachowski nomination if it’s not "paired" with the President’s formal nomination of a Republican to fill the vacant seat previously held by FCC commissioner Debbie Tate.

Traditionally, Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Commerce committee agree to simultaneously approve FCC nominees from each of their parties, -- hence the term “pairing.”

However, at this point, the White House personnel office has not indicated who else beyond Genachowski will be nominated to fill the two additional Commission vacancies. Thus, it appears that the Obama White House wants to have Genachowski confirmed alone by the Senate in the near term, filling the soon-to-be vacant FCC seat currently held by commissioner Jonathan Adelstein.

Adelstein was recently nominated by the President to head up the Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service (RUS) -- a program that has just received billions of dollars as part of the Stimulus Bill’s plan to provide broadband to rural Americans. By nominating Adelstein to this new position, the White House has created another potential vacancy at the FCC, which presumably will be filled by Genachowski. Importantly, if Genachowski takes the Adelstein seat, he would not have to stand for re-nomination and Senate confirmation until 2013 – the conclusion of the five-year slot that Adelstein is currently occupying.

The big question for FCC watchers is whether the While House personnel office will take months to identify Tate’s replacement as well as the President’s nominee for the third Democratic seat on the Commission. That “vetting” process could take a protracted period and, if Republicans insist on “pairing” Genachowski with the two other FCC Commission nominees, the prospects of Genachowski becoming chairman in the next month could be derailed; it could also delay Adelstein’s move to his new RUS assignment. That’s because Adelstein would need to remain on the Commission until Genachowski is confirmed in order to preserve the 2-1 Democratic control of the FCC.

Complicated – yes. But it’s also politically very important because the last thing the Obama White House wants is an FCC with only one Democrat and one Republican commissioner.

While the substantial remake of the FCC is underway, the energetic acting FCC chairman Michael Copps is moving ahead aggressively on a number of fronts. In fact, the Commission’s April 8 open meeting has a jammed packed agenda of five items. These include a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) on developing a national broadband plan, a vote on a Report and Order (R&O) on Improving Data Collection on Minority and Female Broadcast Ownership, and a supplemental NOI on Video Competition.

So while the FCC is in flux, it nonetheless remains one of the busiest places in the Federal City.

Washington Insight

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 21:50:43 +0100

After a delay of more than six weeks, the Obama White House finally made it official. The President’s long time friend, law school classmate and top communications advisor during the Obama campaign for president, Julius Genachowski, will be the next FCC chairman as soon as the Democratic-led Senate commerce committee confirms him. But as NATPE's Washington Counsel Mickey Gardner explains, there are still more seats to fill at the FCC…

While chairman-designee Genachowski had been the expected nominee since well before inauguration day, things sometimes move slowly in Washington and that’s especially the case as the Obama White House vets candidates for formal nomination and Senate confirmation.

At the FCC, the vetting process has been particularly slow. The vacant Republican seat previously held by commissioner Debbie Tate is still empty; and the Democratic seat currently held by commissioner Jonathan Adelstein, whose term ended June 30, 2008, is apparently still up for grabs. In addition, the seat held by the FCC’s solo Republican commissioner, Rob McDowell, is expected to soon be in play since McDowell’s term officially concludes in four months on June 30.

Typically, presidents “package” their appointments to the FCC so that there is bipartisan support for the entire slate of nominees, both Republicans and Democrats. But, as of the White House’s March 3 announcement about Julius Genachowski, there is no official indication as to who will be designated to fill the vacant Tate seat, the soon to be vacant Adelstein seat or the possible third vacant seat which could occur when commissioner McDowell’s term ends.

A strong possibility for one of these seats is Mignon Clyburn, who currently is a Public Utility commissioner for South Carolina. Ms. Clyburn’s father is the House majority whip, congressman James Clyburn (D-SC).

While it is probable that the chairman-designee Genachowski will secure quick approval from the Senate commerce committee chaired by Democratic Senator John D. Rockefeller, IV (D-WV), it could be a much more protracted period before the other new members of President Obama’s FCC are nominated and confirmed by the Senate. In fact, in view of the extensive security and background checks being conducted by the White House personnel office, it could be well into 2009 before the entire Obama team is in place at the FCC.

In the meantime, the very energetic acting FCC chairman Michael Copps is determined to use the current 2-1 Democratic majority at the commission to clean house when it comes to a long list of unresolved issues left behind by former FCC chairman, Republican Kevin Martin.

Is TiVo the Answer to Television's Advertising Woes?

Wed, 04 Mar 2009 21:47:57 +0100

According to predictions from Forrester Research, by 2013 more than half of U.S. homes -- between 50 and 60 million-- will have a DVR. With half of America's homes time shifting programs and fast forwarding through ads, the future of the traditional television advertising model is threatened.

But could the technology that created this challenge for the television industry also be the one to provide the solution for its survival? NATPE interviews TiVo president and CEO Tom Rogers…

NATPE Mentor: Pat Quinn

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 18:26:17 +0100

Looking to set the record straight on the often misaligned role of agents in Hollywood, Innovative Artists' Pat Quinn says: "A lot of people think of agents as some kind of angel in that once you get one, we solve all your problems and create this perfect force that opens all doors and catapults you past all the Hollywood obstacles. It's as if once you sign with an agent you automatically have a career. But I think we're more like magicians, because we can add sparkle and intrigue and help to make things appear, but we need to start with something that focuses the audience's attention -- a rabbit, a scarf, an empty hat. And it's not just waving the magic wand either, there's a lot of work being done behind the curtain."

With more than 20 years' experience as an agent, interspersed with stints in development, producing and program packaging, Pat Quinn is a fast-talking and faster-thinking executive with a reputation for directness and tenacity that has made her a well-placed resource for anyone interesting in knowing how Hollywood works and who the players are.

Her earliest career experience was earned in live theatre -- Quinn earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from Yale School of Drama -- and her first foray as an agent came in 1985 when she was recruited by International Creative Management to create and head the agency's West Coast theatre department. Moving to Los Angeles, Quinn spent the next five years building the agency's client base of writers, production companies, actors and producers, identifying co-production opportunities and expanding the agency's theatre department as well as its international and television packaging business.

Says Quinn modestly, "ICM needed someone to run their West Coast theatre office and I knew how to do all that stuff." In fact, talking about past accomplishments is about as interesting to Quinn as reading month-old newspapers. Definitely a woman who lives in the now, she'd much prefer to discuss her latest clients, two young men whose user-generated content on the Internet led to a series of commercials for a major mobile phone company. "We looked at their video and just flipped," says Quinn. "There is a completely new approach for getting into Hollywood now because of the video capability of the Internet. I'm not sure if Hollywood is combing the Internet looking for talent, but there is certainly a value in knowing a low-budget approach for getting stuff done."

When it comes to growing her business and signing new clients, Quinn admits that most of her clients come through referrals. "A client sees that I have a success rate and they like my style or the way I work appeals to them, and when I meet with them, I sound reasonable to them. What I'm really doing is inside entertainment marketing. I'm giving them exposure and connections and working on a game plan and problem solving. I hate to make it sound boring, but what I'm really doing is business development."

"A lot of people think of agents as some kind of angel in that once you get one, we solve all your problems and create this perfect force that opens all doors and catapults you past all the Hollywood obstacles," says Quinn. "It's as if once you sign with an agent you automatically have a career. But I think we're more like magicians, because we can add sparkle and intrigue and help to make things appear, but we need to start with something that focuses the audience's attention -- a rabbit, a scarf, an empty hat. And it's not just waving the magic wand either, there's a lot of work being done behind the curtain."

As an example, Quinn points to a project from one of her U.K. clients, which she calls "brilliant." The project has been picked up by several big-name studios and networks but is only now coming to fruition. "I'm thrilled about it, but I've been working this project for three years," says Quinn. "Maybe that's just what it takes for something outside the traditional Hollywood track. But what I love about the international business is working more as a consultant with those clients. When I sit down with a U.K. company, for example, the conversation is more about strategic planning, business objectives, looking at what I think I can sell and what's appropriate for the marketplace, and identifying what we'll need to add as far as the sparkling magic dust. It's important for people to know this because they need to have a realistic perception as to what we can do and how it works."

Quinn also says that often, it's the client who needs to make a change in order to advance toward their goal. "Maybe they need a career coach, but the agent can't do it for them. We can suggest, we can guide, but with all of the irregularities and cycles of the business, we can't make the rejection go away. It's basically a freelance business that's very cyclical and tied into the world economy and advertising and you're subject to incredible external influences that have little to do with talent or experience."

Quinn is also very excited about advances and changes in the European entertainment sector. "You can't ignore it, particularly with the cell phone content and technology, you just can't ignore that. The big networks will continue to operate status quo but there's a huge appetite for content and the Europeans seem to have figured out how to do things less expensively and quickly and inventively to catch people's attention. It's very much a two-way street now between Europe and the U.S."

Asked how the development process has evolved since her time as vice president of comedy development at Warner Bros. Television in the early '90s, Quinn responds: "Well, now they all own networks, which has made a huge impact on the business. At the time I was in development, the FinSyn rule was still in place and networks couldn't have an economic interest in the shows they put on air. Also at that time, the networks only wanted to do multi-camera comedies, family shows that would work at 8 p.m. If you look at the development this year, the networks are trying everything. And they've definitely been influenced by larger international forces -- The Office, Ugly Betty -- I don't think you would have seen those 15 years ago. They would have thought I was out of my mind if I'd suggested that. But now, there is such competition for viewers, and the impact of reality, especially on cable, it's not so much the idea anymore as it is the execution."

Working for independent production companies packaging projects and negotiating co-production agreements for three years taught Quinn the reasons why people buy shows. "There's a corporate mandate to buy a particular style or type of show; they also buy because of competition -- not wanting to pass on something that could be a hit for the competition, that certainly enhances a sale; and the elements you've attached to the show -- the star, the director, the showrunner, the writer -- the caliber of the elements attached are essential."

Having worked at Metropolitan and Paradigm agencies before joining Innovative Artists in 2004, Quinn says the last ten years have taught her to go with her instincts on quality. "Sometimes in the past I made the mistake of passing on something when my first instinct was to grab it. But then you have second thoughts or someone questions your initial reaction, or any one of a million outside influences, so you pass, only to regret it later. Now I grab it, and nurture it and sell it."

Advising people interested in becoming agents, Quinn says the best way to start is by getting into one of several good agency training programs. "That's a fabulous way to start. USC also has great courses and internships at the various Hollywood agencies, another fantastic opportunity. But you really need to check it out and see if you like what being an agent entails while you're still in college. Get an early start. When you're an intern, people seem to be more generous with you, so it's a great way to check it out or get started."

Quinn, who teaches in the entertainment studies department at UCLA Extension, credits her students for helping her remain innovative. "The great thing about students is that they're always asking you 'why?' It causes you to stop and examine the process and, potentially, look for a different way. I think it's essential to always be looking for new ways of approaching this business. We're starting to see a lot more innovation now because of the Internet and mobile and technology. It's an exciting time."

LATV Festival Pitch Connects Content and Commerce, Too

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:33:06 +0100

Last July, during the NATPE LATV Festival [www.latvfest.net], one rather unusual Missouri stay-at-home mom took advantage of the event’s Pitch Pit – a series of 10-minute meetings between content creators and potential production, distribution and representation partners – to test the validity of her dream. Six months later, during the 2009 NATPE Market & Conference, Homerun Entertainment [www.homerunent.com.], a leading producer of nonfiction and reality programming, announced it had signed a development deal with “Mutha Mae” Mason, which will turn her unique perspective on motherhood into a reality television series for the 2009/2010 television season.

A Missouri native, Mae struggled through years of fertility treatments, an overseas adoption and a couple of unforeseen family surprises to end up where she is today – a stay-at-home mom with two toddlers two months apart, a 4-year-old, three cats and a computer geek husband.

“Mutha Mae” Mason, who has gained modest popularity through a motherhood-oriented blog and web show, recalls: “After I had a baby two months premature and when we finally brought her home from the hospital, we turned around and went to China and brought home another baby. So I had these two babies and a 3-year-old and I couldn’t find anything on television that would inspire me or give me advice for my situation.You could see moms giving birth, moms adopting, or moms in unusual situations, but where was the average, everyday mom? As I thought about that, all these ideas came into my head, which I wrote down. But then I had to laugh because, hello, I’m in Missouri. I don’t have any connections in Hollywood, you know, dream on. But then I started thinking about it and I have this website where I talked about my experiences trying to have these kids and it had built up an audience, and I realized that if I don’t do this, someone else will.”

On her website (www.MuthaMae.com), she blogs and videocasts about the ups and downs of what she calls “Muthahood,” dispensing tried-and-true advice and anecdotes about everything from avoiding food-poisoning your family to inexpensive ways to beat the summer heat with the kids. Her approach is always honest, offbeat and full of surprises.

Without any professional production experience, Mae, with the help of her husband, shot and edited a video segment for her website. “The response was just tremendous,” says Mae. “And the people who read my site kept sending encouragements, validating that I was onto something and should keep going.”

Eventually, one of the site’s readers, a screenwriter in Los Angeles with whom Mae had developed a friendship, brought NATPE’s LATV Festival to her attention. “This was my chance to share my dream with someone,” says Mae. “I just wanted someone to listen to me and tell me if this would work or not.” The arrival of an economic stimulus check in the mail the following day was Mae’s sign to attend the LATV Festival, so she booked her ticket and headed to Los Angeles.

At the culmination of the LATV Festival, Mae signed up for six Pitch Pit meetings, explaining: “I knew I wasn’t going to waste this opportunity and so I just kept getting back in line and signing up for more Pitch Pit appointments. But I did my homework before I came out to Los Angeles. I studied all of the TV shows and looked at the production companies who were participating in the Pitch Pit. I went to their websites, researched the executives, to figure out what would be a good match for my ideas.” Mae also came prepared with a variety of concepts, in case her initial pitch wasn’t well-received.

One of her meetings was with Greg Spring, vice president of development with Homerun Entertainment. Says Spring: “My initial impression was ‘wow, she’s got IT.’ There was just something about her personality that immediately grabbed you, she was a fantastic character who I knew instantly would be good on television. Then as I heard more about the space that she was in, I thought that was a space we could market ourselves into. And as she started talking about her video blog, I thought great, she’s got on-camera experience. And later, when I checked out the video blog, I was just as impressed as I had been during our meeting.”

Spring, who has been catching pitches at NATPE’s Pitch Pit for some four years, says he’s met some interesting people and come close to signing deals before, but that nobody had all of the pieces of the puzzle put together the way Mae did. “It helped that she had video on herself, which I didn’t see during the Pitch Pit, but afterwards, it helped immensely.”

Adds Mae, “My first impression of Greg was that he was so real and he made me feel so comfortable, I felt like I was just talking with a friend. So I relaxed and just starting telling him my story. And then he stopped me and said ‘I can do something with this, I don’t know what yet, but give me some time and I want to work with you.’”

Continues Mae: “Earlier in the week during one of the sessions we learned that if someone says ‘yes,’ you shake their hand and you walk away, so that’s what I did. Then I had to stop and wonder, did that really happen?”

“The whole LATV Festival experience was so bizarre,” says Mae. “At first, I was intimidated and was afraid to network, or ask questions during the sessions. But then I got up and started to talk and people were so responsive. People started coming up to me and pitching me!”

When she returned home, Mae’s phone began ringing with offers. Assessing what would work best for her family, Mae said the good feeling from their initial Pitch Pit meeting continued with Spring and that she loved his ideas for her show and that, most important, “he put my family’s needs into consideration when he was speaking with me.”

After six months of discussions and negotiations, Mae says “I was surprised by how long the process takes – just the negotiation phase. I met an attorney at the LATV Festival and used his services. He and Greg were both wonderful in educating me about how the process works and what I needed to be aware of. And I must say, overall, it was a very pleasant experience.”

“I’m going into this with my eyes wide open,” reports Mae. “But I’m also no longer that wide-eyed girl that I was at the LATV Festival. I have complete confidence in Homerun and look forward to making beautiful television together.”

Homerun started taking pitch meetings with potential cable networks at NATPE following its announcement of signing Mutha Mae Mason for content development. And Mae will also continue to blog about her experiences both as a mom and now, as a television creator and personality.

NATPE’s One-on-One Interviews with Industry Innovators

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:56:13 +0100

Among the many stimulating and thought-provoking sessions during the upcoming NATPE Market & Conference, the most popular are those that delve into the business philosophies and strategies as well as experiences and insights of the industry’s most successful executives. This year, in addition to Tuesday’s keynote address from Lionsgate co-chairman Jon Feltheimer, NATPE has secured the participation of TiVO CEO Tom Rogers; producers Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun, co-owners of BermanBraun; Twentieth Century Fox Television co-chairs Dana Walden and Gary Newman; and Google’s director of TV ads Michael Steib.

At 3 p.m. on Tuesday, the Hollywood Reporter’s editor-in-chief Elizabeth Guider engages In Conversation with BermanBraun co-owners Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun. Discussing the role of content suppliers in the digital world, Berman, former president of Paramount Pictures and Fox Television, and Braun, former chairman of ABC Entertainment group, are credited with developing such hit shows as American Idol, 24, House, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Lost, Desperate Housewives and Grey’s Anatomy.

Gail Berman, the first and only female executive to hold the top posts at both a major film studio and television network, became president of Paramount Pictures in 2005 and was responsible for the studio’s annual slate of films, including the acquisition of literary properties, development, budgeting, casting, and the production of motion pictures for Paramount Pictures, MTV Films and Nick Movies.

Before joining Paramount, Berman served from 2000 to 2005 as president of entertainment for Fox Broadcasting Company, where she was the first-ever series producer to hold the top Fox programming post. Taking the network to the #1 slot, Berman was in charge of all program development and scheduling, as well as marketing, business affairs and promotions.

Prior to her Fox presidency, Berman served more than two years as founding president of Regency Television, the TV studio created in 1998 as a co-venture between Fox Television Studios and New Regency Productions. Under Berman, Regency Television quickly grew into one of the most prolific and respected suppliers of TV entertainment programming, including the primetime hit Malcolm in the Middle, which she developed for Fox. Berman also served as executive producer on both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and its spin-off, Angel.

Before assuming the Regency presidency, Berman served as president and CEO of production company Sandollar Television. During her six years with Sandollar, she had both creative and bottom-line responsibility for all program development and production, and also served as executive producer on the primetime series All American Girl starring Margaret Cho and Someone Like Me with Gaby Hoffman, as well as the CableACE-Award-nominated special, HBO Presents Hazelle.

In February 2007, Berman co-founded BermanBraun, the Santa-Monica-based entertainment company specializing in television, digital media and feature films, with Lloyd Braun. BermanBraun has since entered into separate strategic alliances with NBC, Microsoft and Pepsi to create and distribute creative content for television and the Internet. BermanBraun’s first major digital offering will be a celebrity/pop culture destination for the MSN network to be launched in 2009.

Prior to BermanBraun, Lloyd Braun served as head of the Yahoo! Media Group (YMG) from November 2004 through December 2006. As head of YMG, Braun oversaw all creative and business aspects of Yahoo!’s media properties, including music, games, television, entertainment, sports, finance and news. During his tenure, Braun lead a massive redesign and rebuilding of Yahoo’s existing media properties, while launching several new media sites, including Yahoo Tech, Yahoo Food, The 9, Pepsi Smash, Live Sets and OMG!

Prior to joining Yahoo!, Braun served as chairman of ABC Entertainment Television Group, a division of The Walt Disney Company, a position he held from January 2002 until April 2004, after serving as co-chairman of the division starting in July 1999. In this position, Braun had responsibility for all creative, programming and business areas of the division, which encompassed Touchstone Television and ABC Entertainment. During his tenure with the ABC Entertainment Television Group, Braun initiated and oversaw the development of such successful programs as Alias, Lost, Desperate Housewives, Grey’s Anatomy, Extreme Makeover, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and Boston Legal. Braun also reorganized and helped build Touchstone Television into one of Hollywood’s top suppliers of series programming.

Braun also served as president of Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, where he oversaw the company’s television, management and motion picture divisions, including the development of such successful programs as Just Shoot Me, Newsradio and The Sopranos.

Wednesday morning, SNL Kagan welcomes TiVo CEO and president Tom Rogers to the podium for the Newsmaker address. Making headlines for his comments on the serious commercial avoidance issue that is creating an overwhelming challenge to the television industry’s economic model, Rogers, who will be interviewed by New York Times media reporter Brooks Barnes, meets the TV advertising crisis head-on in this timely analysis that includes Rogers’ cutting-edge ideas for new advertising models.

Rogers was named president and CEO of TiVo in July 2005. Prior to taking on this role, Rogers served as vice chairman of the board of TiVo. Before that, Rogers was chairman of the board of Teleglobe International Holdings, Ltd., an international telecommuni-cations provider. He also served as the senior operating executive for media and entertainment for Cerberus Capital Management, a large private equity firm.

Previously, Rogers was chairman and CEO of Primedia, Inc., then the leading targeted media company in the United States. Primedia published some 200 magazines, operated more than 400 websites, and owned a wide range of television and video businesses. Prior to joining Primedia, Rogers was president of NBC Cable and EVP of NBC, as well as NBC’s chief strategist. Among his many accomplishments are the founding of CNBC, the nation’s leading business news channel, and the establishment of the NBC/Microsoft cable channel and Internet joint venture, MSNBC. In addition, he served as co-chairman of the Arts & Entertainment and History Channels, and was responsible for overseeing many other cable channels including Court TV, Bravo, American Movie Classics, Independent Film Channel, the National Geographic Channel and numerous regional sports channels.

Prior to NBC, Rogers was senior counsel to the U.S. House of Representatives Telecommunications, Consumer Protection and Finance Subcommittee and was responsible for drafting a number of communications laws, including the Cable Act of 1984, as well as overseeing the FCC. Rogers began his career as an attorney with a Wall Street law firm.

Cynopsis Media will be sponsoring this year’s informal morning discussions known as Coffee With… First up on Wednesday, January 28, at 8:15 a.m. are Dana Walden and Gary Newman, co-chairs of Twentieth Century Fox Television. The duo, who have led Twentieth to nearly a decade of success, will discuss their strategy for developing and producing blockbuster television programming as well as examine their approach to leveraging new technologies to extend the life and reach of hit franchises.

Dana Walden and Gary Newman, the successful team who had served as co-presidents of Twentieth Century Fox Television (TCFTV) for nearly a decade, were promoted to co-chairs of the studio in July 2007. Together, they have guided the company to unparalleled success across all media, from broadcast and cable television to syndication, mobile, broadband and beyond. Recognized as a creative haven to some of the most talented writers and producers working in television today, TCFTV is home to Seth MacFarlane, Shawn Ryan, Greg Garcia, Ryan Murphy, David E. Kelley, Howard Gordon and Joel Surnow and enjoys an exclusive relationship with Imagine Television.

In addition to its roster of acclaimed live action scripted comedies and dramas, TCFTV remains the undisputed industry leader in producing animated comedies for primetime, with five animated hits currently in production on new episodes. The studio’s series include: 24, Bones, Prison Break, The Simpsons, Family Guy, My Name Is Earl and How I Met your Mother, among others.

Newman and Walden also oversee the studio’s enormously successful worldwide licensing and merchandising division, which is charged with extending and exploiting the company’s vast array of entertainment properties including The Simpsons, Family Guy and 24 in categories such as publishing, videogames, promotions, e-commerce, retail, themed entertainment and consumer products. Moreover, the pair share oversight of licensing and merchandising efforts for the properties of Fox Film, Fox Sports, and a number of third-party products including the crown jewel property of Microsoft Game Studios, Halo.

In the fall of 2002, they pioneered the now-common industry practice of releasing television series on DVD immediately following each broadcast season, a revolutionary idea that helped propel the Fox drama 24 to blockbuster status in its second year on the air.

Newman and Walden have also been at the vanguard of developing new production models, creating fox21 in 2004, a production house devoted to empowering writers to produce their “passion projects” by rethinking conventional television production economics. They also launched the first studio mobile entertainment unit which originated the mobile phone series with 24: Conspiracy and has gone on to produce a wide range of innovative content based on the studio’s hit franchises for the worldwide wireless market.

Prior to being named president alongside Newman, Walden served as the studio’s EVP of drama, overseeing an award-winning slate of programming that consistently rated at the top of critic’s lists. She joined the studio’s creative department in 1994 as VP of current programming after holding the position of SVP, media and corporate relations for both Twentieth Television and TCFTV. She began her career at the public relations firm Bender, Goldman & Helper.

Newman served as the studio’s EVP and top-ranking business officer prior to being appointed president with Walden in 1999, and was instrumental in building TCFTV into an industry leader both domestically and abroad. Prior to his tenure at TCFTV, he served for six years as an executive in the business affairs department of NBC. Newman began his career as an attorney.

Thursday morning’s Coffee With… welcomes to NATPE Google’s director of TV ads Michael Steib. Steib heads a new division at Google that lets advertisers buy, schedule and deliver TV commercials through an online system. Before joining Google, he spent six years at NBC as part of a group that made more than $20 billion of acquisitions, including those of Telemundo, Bravo and Universal Studios. He also started NBBC, now known as hulu.com, and co-founded NBC Weather Plus.

In 2008, Steib was honored as one of Crain’s New York “40 Under 40” professionals. He was also recognized as one of TV Week’s “Twelve to Watch” in 2008, was selected for the Multichannel News “40 Under 40” list in 2007 and was chosen for TV Week’s “Hot List” in 2006.

NATPE VideoNuze’s Seven Broadband/Mobile CEOs Explain How to Raise Money in the Down Economy

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:51:50 +0100

Amidst all the gloomy economic news, there are actually still some earlier stage companies that are raising new money. To learn more about how they’re doing it, NATPE VideoNuze editor Will Richmond e-mailed the CEOs of seven broadband/mobile video companies that have collectively raised nearly $80M in the last three months. He asked each of them three basic questions: What are the key success factors for raising money given the difficult economic climate? What are the biggest challenges? Is there any specific advice you’d offer to those trying to raise money these days?

The seven CEOs who graciously took time out of their busy day to contribute their thoughts (along with the recent rounds they’ve raised) are:

Amir Ashkenazi, Adap.tv ($13M Series B, 9/23/08)

Frank Barbieri, Transpera ($8.25M Series B, 11/13/08)

Alex Blum, KickApps ($14M Series C, 11/25/08)

Dean Denhart, BlackArrow ($20M Series B, 10/6/08)

Keith Kocho, ExtendMedia ($10M Series C, 12/2/08)

Steve Rosenbaum, Magnify.net ($750K Series A1, 11/21/08)

Ben Weinberger, Digitalsmiths ($12M Series B, 11/13/08)

While there were some common themes in their answers (many of which echoed the usual fundraising maxims), there was plenty of variety and a few outliers. Space constraints didn’t allow for Richmond to share all of their specific answers, but he tried his best to summarize the common themes and highlight key nuggets of wisdom below.

1. What are the key success factors for raising money given the difficult economic climate?

The answers that dominated were all around revenue, profitability and cash flow. All the CEOs mentioned, in one way or another, that being able to demonstrate real revenue growth and momentum is essential. Some noted that in the past traffic or usage may have been sufficient, but now the “premium is on paying customers,” and how get to profitability and cash flow breakeven using reasonable assumptions. Several mentioned that investors are as risk averse as ever, which of course comes as no surprise. They want to see concrete, well-thought-out plans.

Investors have also become more sophisticated about the whole broadband video sector and expect entrepreneurs to be able to explain where they fit into the ecosystem and what their points of differentiation are. Importantly, they are looking for proven models (unfortunately an oxymoron for a pure start-up), or at least some minimal history of success that goes “beyond PPT slideware.”

A couple of CEOs noted that investors have shifted from asking “how fast can you scale?” to “how will you get through this crisis?” They no longer expect a quick exit. They are looking for a real plan that includes contingency tactics if, for example, competitors do something desperate like cut their prices in half.

2. What are the biggest challenges?

The prevailing theme here was uncertainty, starting with investors’ own business models. They’re focused on how much of their funds to hold in reserve to shore up existing portfolio companies. They’re trying to gauge their own limited partners’ appetite for venture investing given the credit squeeze. Then of course they’re trying to understand the impact of broadband market drivers like ad spending and user adoption. One CEO lamented the difficulty of persuading people to put new money to work on the very day the stock market’s dropping by 500 points. Still another noted that all of this can lead to a “self-fulfilling prophecy” where everything freezes and missed opportunities abound.

With respect to the broadband market specifically, one CEO said the key challenge is showing how “you monetize video for your clients.” Absent that, “it will not only be hard to raise money, but harder still for your client to spend money with you.”

Another said that the level of scrutiny has gotten so high that it’s not even worth talking to any investor that doesn’t have its own track record of investing in the broadband video sector. It’s just too hard to educate people in this environment. Another CEO added that your model needs to be “brilliant and bulletproof, with an A-level management team already in place.” Boy, there’s a steep hurdle to clear.

3. Is there any specific advice you’d offer to those trying to raise money these days?

Many of the answers to this question reflected fundraising basics: understand your business thoroughly, put a balanced team in place, seek out investors you know first, have a solid plan, and bootstrap as much as possible first.

With respect to raising money in the current lousy market, there was a broad range of sentiment. One CEO said “Don’t…the terms are going to suck,” while another said to be “incredibly realistic about how much to raise, your burn rate and valuation.” On the more optimistic end of the spectrum, one said “The market’s poor performance means that investors are looking for new opportunities. Ignore all the negative energy and naysayers.” And another remarked that “Even during the tech disaster of 2001-2003, angel investors, VCs and tech behemoths were still putting money to work in promising sectors.” Another heavily emphasized the value of loyal and supportive existing investors (if there are any) in helping making the case to new investors.

More tactically, one CEO said that the more you “minimize uncertainty that surrounds your business specifically, the better off you’ll be.” Another said to make the transaction as simple as possible, and to “get the big items off the table first.” Still another said to demonstrate “you’re indispensable to customers, helping them weather the downturn.” Finally, one cautioned to be ready to take a lot more meetings than usual and expect a lot deeper follow-up: “it may require you to go well beyond investors in your backyard to find the right fit.”

Hopefully some of this is helpful to those of you trying to raise money right now, or thinking about doing so in the near future. Broadband video remains one of the hottest sectors out there; even still, if you’re not getting a lot of love right now, you’re not alone.

Will Richmond, a 20-year veteran of the broadband, cable TV, content and technology industries, will be facilitating NATPE’s Digital Briefings during the upcoming NATPE 2009 Market & Conference. The Digital Briefings, held Tuesday and Wednesday in the Theatre on the floor in the NATPE exhibition area, will feature executives who are on the front lines leading their companies into the digital and broadband age. Top decision-makers from technology and new media companies participating in the Briefings include

Steve Cooperman, product line business manager – P2 HD Systems, Panasonic Broadcast and Television Systems; Adobe’s Nick Hippe; Katrina Wood, founder and CEO, MediaXchange Ltd; Theodore Garcia, strategy and advisory lead, media & entertainment, Capgemini Americas; Shari Barnett, director, marketing, Microsoft; James Semenak, principal industry consultant, Teradata Corporation; James Rooke, strategy & business transformation lead, Capgemini; Cathy Hetzel, president, advanced media and information (AMI) division, Rentrak Corporation; Eric Bruce, research director, WSB-TV; George Winslow, contributing editor, HD Update; Douglas A. Lee, EVP, worldwide digital media, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc.; Maryann Baldwin, VP, Frank N. Magid Associates; and Kirk Kopic, president, Vimation.

Hollywood is stepping up its efforts to create original online series, but is the studio system capable of coming up with a hit Internet format, and just how do you judge success in this medium? C21 Media.net’s Jonathan Webdale, in a story filed on October 31, asks Can digital Hollywood deliver?

Sorority Forever (left) debuted on MySpaceTV in September, the latest among a rapidly lengthening roll-call of online shows emerging from Hollywood’s studio system in a bid to crack the dark art of Internet entertainment.

If a couple of guys in a garage can create a phenomenon like Lonelygirl15, then surely the collective talents of Tinseltown can come up with something better.

Well maybe, but Sorority is playing it safe, drawing on the popularity of LG15 lead Jessica Rose and the coproduction skills of Big Fantastic, the outfit behind web series Sam Has 7 Friends and the Michael Eisner-backed Prom Queen.

Sorority comes out of Warner Bros. Studio 2.0, the division the company set up two years ago to tackle perhaps the greatest challenge facing Hollywood right now: how to come to grips with a medium that’s threatening its existence.

Can Jessica Rose really come to the rescue? At the time of this writing – 18 episodes into the series’ 40-installment run – MySpace was clocking up reasonable numbers, between 50,000 and 200,000 for each.

It’s not clear how the show’s performing on TheWB.com (left), Warner Bros.’ broadband revival of its one-time TV network, but either way, Sorority still doesn’t look like the breakaway hit Hollywood’s holding out for.

If only the web weren’t there at all. Life would be so much easier. People would stay glued to their TV screens and continue to consume the multimillion-dollar-per-episode dramas and sitcoms the studios have traded in for decades.

The Internet isn’t exactly blowing all that away, but it is exerting considerable pressure on the status quo. The plot Hollywood is having to figure out is how to take its big-budget genius and apply it to an environment that plays by an entirely different set of rules, if indeed there are any rules at all.

The trouble is, no one’s written a script like this before. But at a time when TV advertising is purportedly in decline and viewers are spending more and more time online, it’s critical that someone come up with a working draft soon.

Gemini Division (left) is NBC Universal’s (NBCU) first attempt, a 50-episode online sci-fi series that kicked off in August. The plot is unmistakably a Hollywood product, and so is its star, Rosario Dawson, who first sprang to fame in Sin City as a machine-gun-toting, fishnet-stocking-wearing hooker.

When NBCU announced Gemini in April it came with the news that it was setting up a new digital studio. But in truth the Peacock trumpeted the creation of the same operation back in the autumn of 2005. If the aim this time around was to erase all memories of series such as Junior Year Abroad and About Face, it really didn’t need to bother.

What is different now is that NBCU has to some extent honed its business model, partnering with Omnicom Media Group to try to bring in the agency’s clients at the earliest stages of potential projects.

“We’re lining up advertisers and brands before we move forward into production, which is a little different from how other folk are looking at this,” says Cameron Death (left), VP at NBCU Digital Studio.

“We have a first-look deal where we’re providing Omnicom with a look at our slate prior to other agencies and they’re pulling us in early and giving us a look at some of the brand plans and briefings that are occurring with them. Advertisers and brands are critical to us and the studio’s success.”

Gemini has been entirely funded by advertising, although Microsoft, Cisco, Intel, Acura and UPS were wooed by Creative Artists Agency before NBCU was named U.S. distribution partner.

The show actually comes from Electric Farm Entertainment and is co-owned by Sony Pictures Television International (SPTI). The two collaborated last year on Afterworld (below), Sony’s first foray into original digital – a futuristic multiplatform animated series for which Dawson provided a voice-over, and which has sold globally since its debut in the U.S. on Anheuser-Busch’s ill-fated Bud.tv.

“It was a property that defined us as a group because we’ve always been a traditional TV company and through the success of Afterworld I was able to bring in a mobile and digital team,” says Marie Jacobson, SPTI’s executive VP of programming and production. “That’s really spawned what we’re now setting out to do, which is create a full suite of original proprietary digital projects.”

Jacobson says the experience of Afterworld taught Sony some important lessons that it’s carried through to Gemini, the first international sale of which has been sealed in Australia, where Afterworld aired to great success on Sci Fi Channel.

In the pipeline is Woke Up Dead, an online zombie comedy with Napoleon Dynamite star Jon Heder, which also comes from Electric Farm – a firm set up by veteran Hollywood producers Stan Rogow, Brent Friedman and Jeff Sagansky. NBCU has again claimed U.S. distribution.

Jacobson (left) says the series will debut early next year and that Sony has another six projects in the works, three of which it will look to launch next spring. “We’re definitely spending seven figures on development but we’re not being silly. We’re investing very tactically.”

NBCU isn’t exclusively choosing original web productions that are entirely ad-funded and has nine shows in development, some of which it will fund and produce in-house, but it's actively pitching all to advertisers right now. Jacobson says Sony’s approach is less brand-centric.

“Advertising is critical to our success but I don’t think like a media planner, I think like a programmer and a development executive. Something that’s really important to me personally is that we apply the same creative standards to whatever we commission for the web, and it’s not dependent solely on whatever advertisers we have on board.”

NBCU’s Death says the Digital Studio’s attempts at weaving brands more deeply into its web series will not compromise their integrity. “I won’t put anything online that I wouldn’t feel comfortable putting on air or putting the Peacock logo on. We’re upping the game in terms of the level of production quality, the star power and the way we’re having brands interact with the content,” he says.

Over at CBS Interactive, director of web original content Jigar Thakarar has just presided over the launch of the company’s first two online shows. The first, an Ikea-sponsored comedy, stars … wait for it … Illeana Douglas, Jeff Goldblum, Tom Arnold, Craig Bierko, Kevin Pollack, Justine Bateman, Robert Patrick and Ed Begley Jr.

CBS acquired the show from SXM a few days after it debuted on YouTube, pulling it from the world’s biggest video-sharing site in favor of running the remaining episodes exclusively on TV.com, a business CBS picked up with its $1.8 billion summer acquisition of CNET Networks.

“It’s a little bit of a departure from our primary model, which is developing shows ourselves, taking them to sponsors, pre-funding them and then distributing them through our Audience Network,” says Thakarar, referring to CBS’s string of online distribution partners – AOL, MSN, Yahoo! and Bebo among them.

This model has been adhered to with the company’s second web series, a clip show about primetime TV called The Dial, which it’s also chosen to window on TV.com before considering a wider release. Created and funded in-house, the series is currently without a brand on board.

“We’re putting it up to test demand and we’re actively seeking out sponsors for it now,” says Thakarar. Several other projects are in the early stages and again, bringing in advertising partners from the outset is a crucial part of the equation.

“What we’re pitching to them is scripted, branded entertainment that they’re going to see and have input on. These ideas were generated with an advertiser in mind but it’s not going to be overt product placement to the extent that the story doesn’t come first. Although the brand is featured and is in some cases the star, the entertainment value is really what we try to focus on and strive for.”

Gauging success on the Internet is also something the studios are still very much trying to come to grips with. NBCU’s Death says it’s “an interesting philosophical discussion” the Digital Studio group has all the time.

“Would I turn down tens of millions of views on YouTube? No, not at all, but I think we need to change the conversation about what success looks like. What I look for is how engaged people are with my brand and how much time they are spending with it, and that’s a very different measure from just a raw view number.”

Indeed, if this barometer were applied to Squeegees (above), the first original series to come out of Disney-ABC digital studio Stage 9, it certainly wouldn’t qualify for hit status. Having shown promise, with its second episode racking up over 300,000 YouTube views, by the fifth installment the number had dropped to little more than 3,000.

Barry Jossen (below), ABC Studios executive VP of creative and Stage 9 general manager, says that such a narrow definition doesn’t do justice to the Handsome Donkey co-production, which debuted in February. “We think it’s been very successful. It premiered on ABC.com and YouTube, sponsored by Toyota. Following the initial launch we’ve expanded the distribution to a number of different sites. Mevio, Hulu, eBaum’s World are examples. When we aggregate all the views together, Squeegees is now at over 2.5 million views, which is a significant number for any original online video.”

A further mark of the series’ success, he says, is that Disney-ABC Television International has now sold it to MSN Europe, where it’s due to launch soon. “We have very high expectations it will perform well there too,” he says, and Stage 9 is already in post-production on Handsome Donkey’s next project, Decisions Decisions.

But hopes of having Stage 9’s second series – an ambitious sci-fi action thriller called Trenches – out by last spring were dashed, highlighting the challenges Hollywood studios are encountering with web content.

“It’s probably the largest production ever made for new media, loaded with visual effects and space battles. Due to the complication of the production and the cost structure we have, it took a long time to complete post-production, which has now finally happened. You’re going to see it this fall,” says Jossen.

“There’s a lot to be learned but there’s also the issue of building up enough inventory so that we can have regularity and frequency of releases. What’s been going on over the past six months has been a re-evaluation of our development and getting projects through the production process.”

Some are skeptical that any of the studios will succeed in original digital entertainment, partly due to the fact that their main motivation is rationalizing their businesses rather than innovation for innovation’s sake, and also because newcomers tend to succeed in new media.

“NBC and CBS didn’t make it in cable, Ted Turner and MTV Networks did – they were new brands on a new platform,” says Herb Scannell (left), chairman of Next New Networks, owner of a portfolio of Internet TV channels.

He should know. Prior to co-founding Next New in January last year, Scannell was vice-chairman of MTVN and president of Nickelodeon. Like former Disney CEO Michael Eisner with his digital media studio Vuguru, Scannell decided to step out of the Hollywood system and try to create web content from there.

Obama Girl (below), star of one of Next New’s channels, Barely Political, is probably the biggest success story to have emerged from these attempts. “She regularly gets 2 to 3 million views any time she makes a video. Barely Political last month had 42 million views,” says Scannell.

He gives short shrift to the Hollywood studios’ attempts to generate online hits by bringing in the likes of Rosario Dawson. “It’s a strategy that can work. Stars are stars and they are of every medium but I think stars are also born of a medium,” he says.

Disney’s Rossen is unfazed by such comments and admits great creativity can come from anywhere, but believes that the opportunity and the resources that the studio system provides mean it’s as good a place as anywhere for it to happen.

“What I can say with a lot of confidence is that the transcendent pop cultural hit from new media has not emerged yet. We’re pioneers now. There’s no path to success, no path to profitability, no path to longevity, so we’re all out here forging ahead, trying our own ideas to find that formula and establish an industry that will have durability.”

What the studios have learned so far:

Quality
It’s absolutely essential to have high-quality content, both in terms of production values and in execution. It needs strong storytelling and good performances.

Delivery
People want great, deep storytelling but they also want it fast. Asking them to wait six months for a narrative to play out in such an immediate medium is asking too much.

Awareness
Having proper marketing and promotion is crucial to make sure the audience knows where the content is and how to find it.

Ubiquity
Having distribution that enables the audience to access the content from multiple locations is very important.

Sponsorship
Since most content is available free but there is some cost involved in producing it, you must have sponsorship to drive the whole system.

Community
Video drives viewership and creates an audience, a community. Once that is formed it needs a place to congregate. Interactivity or social networking are helpful tools in building and maintaining the community.
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Surviving and Thriving in Change

Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:45:15 +0100

Organizations and people in the media industry are facing tremendous changes caused by mergers and acquisitions, technology, new distribution channels, and fluctuating viewer interests. In this climate of uncertainty and economic downturn, it is critical for media professionals to successfully manage change in order to survive and thrive. On Thursday, January 29, at 10 a.m. in Ballroom H during the NATPE 2009 Market & Conference, Dave Logan, faculty member in the USC Executive MBA program and co-author of four books on change management including Tribal Leadership, joins Rod Perth, co-founder & president of television at Reelz Channel Network, to discuss the dynamics of managing change, and keys for reinventing oneself, products, and entire organizations. The session, duly titled Surviving and Thriving in Change, will also focus on how professionals can take measured risk to increase the opportunity for producing tremendous results and is produced in association with Really Useful Information (RUI).

Continuing to reinvent himself throughout his storied television career, Rod Perth has served as president of worldwide television for Jim Henson, as SVP of late night and non-network programs for CBS Television Network, was president of entertainment at USA Network, and most recently co-founded and served as president of television for Reelz Channel Network, where he continues as a consultant.

As a co-founder of start-up business ReelzChannel, Perth is credited as one of five senior executives responsible for managing the entire vision and development of ReelzChannel, including all of its programming, production, distribution, branding/marketing, network operations and advertising sales. Seen in nearly 40 million homes by the end of 2008, ReelzChannel has master distribution agreements with DirectTV, Dish Echostar, Time Warner, Comcast, Charter, Mediacom, NCTC and Insight.

Among his other notable career achievements are serving as executive producer of Jim Henson Television’s Farscape, named the best sci-fi television program on television in 2000. While president of entertainment at USA Networks, Perth successfully led all programming efforts for both the USA Network and the Sci Fi Channel, growing Sci Fi Channel from 12 million to over 60 million subscribers while also developing the channel’s brand that became known for original programming. During his long tenure with CBS Television, Perth was one of the network’s primary executives responsible for attracting David Letterman to CBS during one of broadcasting history’s most closely watched pursuits between two networks to sign on-air talent for late night. Letterman’s addition to the CBS lineup resulted in dramatic changes in the important network late night television wars. Perth was also responsible for establishing CBS’ in-house program syndication unit, which became the template for the network’s successful entry into the first-run and off-net programming distribution arena.

Perth, who was VP and station manager for WBBM-TV, the CBS owned and operated station in Chicago, has also held various sales management positions, including VP and GM of CBS Spot Sales in New York.

Dave Logan, a professor at the Marshall School of Business at USC, is also co-author of four books on change management, including Tribal Leadership.

In Tribal Leadership, Logan, along with co-authors John King and Halee Fischer-Wright, shows leaders how to assess their organization’s tribal culture on a scale from one to five and then implement specific tools to elevate to the next stage. The result is unprecedented success.

In a rigorous ten-year study of approximately 24,000 people in more than two dozen corporations, Logan, King and Fischer-Wright refine define a common theme: the success of a company depends on its tribes, the strength of its tribes is determined by the tribal culture, and a thriving corporate culture can be established by an effective tribal leader. Tribal Leadership will show leaders how to employ their companies’ tribes to maximize productivity and profit. The authors’ research, backed up with interviews ranging from Brian France (CEO of NASCAR) to Dilbert creator Scott Adams, shows that more than three-quarters of the organizations they’ve studied have tribal cultures that are merely adequate, no better than the third of five tribal stages.

Logan is also co-founder and senior partner of CultureSync, a management consulting firm specializing in cultural change, strategy and negotiation. CultureSync’s clients include Intel, Colliers International, American Express, Prudential and Health Net.

Currently, Logan teaches leadership and negotiation in the USC Executive MBA program (ranked fifth in the world), and is on the faculty at the Center for Medical Excellence in Portland and the International Center for Leadership in Finance (ICLIF) in Kuala Lumpur, endowed by the former prime minister of Malaysia.

In addition to Tribal Leadership, Logan is currently at work on a 2009 release recently selected for the “Warren Bennis” line of books at Wiley. His work has also been published in numerous academic and professional journals, including a 2006 “agenda” in MIT-Sloan Management Review. Paying tribute to the historical evolution of programming, Mark Itkin, EVP and worldwide co-head of television at William Morris Agency, and Bruce David Klein, president and executive producer with Atlas Media Corporation, team up again to present How We Got Here: The Talk Show. Tom Green, host of Tom Green’s House Tonight, producers Burt Dubrow and Woody Fraser, paraMedia president and executive producer of TMZ Jim Paratore and talk show host Sally Jessy Raphael join the duo to examine the past, present and future of talk shows.

NATPE TV interviewed producers Burt Dubrow and Woody Fraser in advance of the session and include portions of those interviews here. [watch video]

If you’d like to view the entire How We Got Here: The Talk Show session from the NATPE 2008 Conference & Exhibition, order your DVD copy today for $39.95 from the NATPE Store [http://www.tangibledata.com/natpe/index.cfm?categoryId=413&discId=1].