Inspiration from NBC’s upswing

22Oct12

Even though the interesting news piece I choose somehow seems off the point to what we are talking about this week, which is mainly about the production of film and television, the article brings its own inspiration to this topic. I personally believe that as we are learning from papers and books, it will be a great replenishment if we take a look at what’s happening in the industry.

Titled “NBC Finds Itself in Unfamiliar Territory: On Top”, the article shares a piece of interesting news about NBC, last among younger viewers for a decade, is suddenly on top. This hints NBC’s success of its television show production and selection in the beginning of this season. From what the article provides, we can clearly see the factors contributing to NBC’s upswing:

The first comes from external force: NBC’s competitors are going down this season – or maybe for now. The other networks may “have helped NBC’s cause by offering little new to excite younger viewers.” ABC, CBS and FOX failed to offer wonderful new shows like Once Upon A Time, 2 Broke Girls which were hits last year. This also suggests that the competition in television network market is extremely fierce: if you did something really fantastic and then stay where you are, you got beaten by others in seconds.

The second factor is all about the goal of strategy. NBC came into the season with a limited strategic objective: “Our big goal was to build one night a year.” And seven nights in a week make it to the top. To carry out the strategy, many programs have been adjusted. For example, crucial decision was adding a second edition of the hit singing competition, “The Voice,” on Monday to complement the version that ran in the spring.

The other essential ingredient in NBC’s early success has been the addition of the season’s only breakout hit, “Revolution.” It’s just like the hit shows we talked above, creative and attractive, garnering big attention.

 The most tricky and wonderful strategy NBC adopted was to use the big audiences it attracted this summer for the Olympics to promote its new shows, even sliding a preview of “Go On” into its coverage one night. 

Another inspiration from the article is that television production professionals and television network managers must pay attention to their target audiences under the circumstance of television market segmentation as well as the booming of social media. The article believes that “it doesn’t make sense for the networks to put on another police procedural if they are trying to get younger. They need shows that get people talking on social media.”

 

 by Feiran

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/22/business/media/nbc-finds-itself-in-unfamiliar-territory-on-top.html?ref=media

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