Sponsor (1964)

& sponsor AUGUST 10. UHF— sponsor panacea or pitfall? Supporters see a new vista of boundless advertiser and viewer possibilities; others see trouble looming in the form of smaller audiences and higher ad costs Ds POUR m SI VI \ VI VKs I HI stations throughout the nation will compete on an equal footing with VHF outlets for sponsor dollars, according to the best "guesstimates" of the industry. How will this change the nature of broadcast advertising and the medium itself Proponents of UHF see the additional stations meeting the enormous needs of a fast-growing viewei population. The) see new networks, new program experimentation and a burgeoning of specialt) shows providing advertisers with vehicles for reaching "specialized*1 audient In short, thej envision a vasti) panded and successful system of television, enriched by I Hi On the other hand, there is a less Optimistic group that looks with some apprehension upon a possible proliferation o\ I HI outlets These individuals are less certain that the growth of UHF will result in a roS) future Ihev wonder if more stations mav not mean a drasticallj reduced number of viewers for each outlet. If this is so. the) ask. will it not mean charging the sponsor even more, although his message is reaching fewer homes ' The answer to all o\ tv\ future probabl) lies somewhere bctw ( these two views But. hopeful as the situation ma) seem, it is main -fa. ted and fraught with uncertainties and possible pitfalls It is a situation that saw I HI suffer through the panes of a ; mature birth in the carlv '50s V that tune. I operators found themselves caught in a viciou ju*t 10, 1964