Sponsor (Oct-Dec 1964)

among today's affiliates is a generation that in large measure is not hemmed in by parochial interests or viewpoints or shackled by motheaten cliches. It's a new generation: they think and talk like individualists and are not slavish to the rituals, mores and codes of the corporate structure. For instance, ABC-TV, while unveiling some of its next season's product, encountered provocative critiques and suggestions. One criticism had to do with the choice of program titles. Among the examples cited was a western ABC-TV had in the offing: The Saga of the Big Valley. Asked an affiliate: wasn't the network afraid that this series might be mistaken for the Saga oj Western Man, which didn't come off so well? Another point raised: why were ABCTV's researchers urging the continued scheduling of one-hour shows at 10 p.m. when the current season's casualty list is loaded with 10 to 1 1 p.m. hour programs? Sidelight: CBS-TV and NBC-TV also engage in dialogues with affiliates, but they've been less incisively critical. Cyanamid relaxes commercial stance A number of farm stations across the country will be gratified at the news that American Cyanamid has reversed its policy on who at the station does the Cyanamid commercials. As relayed to reps, Cyanamid will no longer insist that only the farm director shall deliver its commercials. What Cyanamid had run up against: ( 1 ) some stations maintained a policy which exempted the farm director from doing commercials, (2) other stations balked at giving Cyanamid exclusivity for its category on the commercial delivery services of the farm director. NBC's twin pillars of strength Outside of Bonanza, the two items in NBCTV's nighttime inventory that have been holding up strongest are the Wednesday and Saturday night movies. That goes for both ratings and sales. And the reason for bringing this up is a tabulation made by NBC-TV last week in connection with the two movie series. The network had but 39 commercial minutes open on the two series up through the last of the originals to be shown for the season. What makes this of particular note: as a rule, the movies were bought as just one of the items in a mixed package, and it's now quite obvious that the movies have become a sort of fulcrum for the network's nighttime sales. In other words, the movies have become more kite than tail. ASCAP has plans for CATV The CATV systems might as well know that ASCAP is maintaining a sharp eye on that field and is waiting for a big enough operator to come along before engaging in a test case. ASCAP's policy, apparently, is: let CATV become big business first and then ask for licensing agreements or else. The fact that others that brought copyrights suits against CATV operations failed to make good in the courts doesn't phase ASCAP. In the United Artists case the courts upheld the anti-trust defense. In a Utah case a federal court took the view that a sports event, which a CATV operator picked up without permission, was neither copyrightable nor patentable. Says ASCAP: ours are statutory rights and, if CATV cries antitrust, we'll point out that under a consent decree we have with the government the user can ask the court to set the fee. TvB gets away from crowds Another era has passed as far as the TvB is concerned. Gone are the days when the TvB would send out crews on long treks to hold sales training clinics. To these clinics would be invited local agency people and advertisers as well as the main targets, station salesmen. These wholesale excursions were costly, but they brought to even the smallest markets a quintessence of the latest proven selling techniques and assortment of success stories. Apparently, TvB now feels tv has reached the point where a more compact approach would be appropriate. So during February, March and April the sales clinic concept will be syphoned into individual stations, and in a rather limited number of markets. Intimacy and coziness will, you might say, replace the impersonality of the rostrum. As a top TvB executive put it: "You accomplish a lot more in the long run when you get some salesmen together in their own nest and lend an air of just-me-to-you to your message." ecember 14, 1964 25