When Cable began as Community Antenna Television
in 1948, all it did was collect over the air TV
signals and send them down a cable.
When Cable networks began, so did Cable
advertising. The fledgling new networks sold (or
gave away) ads in their programs. Memories are
etched in our brain; The Amazing Slicer-Dicer, and
"so you don't forget, call before midnight
tonight". Eventually local cable systems were
given permission to sell ads and cover up selected
Ginsu Knife ads on the networks.
Cartoon Network
Local Cable sales have never been great because
the audience is so fragmented they can't sell it
for even half what the local TV station can get
for crummy time slots.
However, Cable is growing in strength and numbers.
Now the broadcast industry is talking seriously
about the numbers and amounts of national ad sales
for Cable. Viewership for the big national over
the air networks continues to shrink as Cable
continues to grow. It's not an even contest, yet.
A recent look at the numbers show, are you ready
for this? Nickelodeon is the number one Cable
network (this is for the total day, not prime
time. If you buy Cable ads your commercials will
be scattered all day). Other movers on the chart,
TNT (Turner Network Television), Cartoon Network
(A Turner property) Disney, Lifetime, USA, TBS and
Fox News.
Most of the Cable networks in the top 20 allow the
local systems to insert commercials, some as cheap
as 5 bucks each.
The ratings people now count Cable just like TV.
As a comparison, consider a recent 60 Minutes
broadcast (CBS - over the air) had a rating of
7.0, while Fox News average rating of 0.6 on any
given night (that's point 6). A rating reflects
the percentage of TV households viewing a program.
Local Cable is still a good buy if you can keep it
cheap and select the networks. The Cable Guy won't
like it, but it can be done.
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