Television digest with electronic reports (Jan-Dec 1959)

WEEKLY Television Digest AUGUST 17. 1959 © 1959 p [ /BR>4RV UCATIONS, me. VOL. 15: No. 33 The authoritative service for executives eng:ag:ed in all branches of the television arts & industries SUMMARY-INDEX OF WEEK'S NEWS Networks BILLING BONANZA IN FALL TV will see total gross spending on all 3 networks in last quarter of nearly $205 million (pp. 1 & 6). SLIDE-RULE SHOWMEN re coming into their own at the networks. I Latest upgrading is former CBS research dir. Oscar Katz to the post of top program v.p. (p. 6). I OPTION TIME CHANGES at ABC-TV, which is shifting from 7:3010:30 to 8-11 p.m. No change in plans at other networks (p. 7). FCC TV PROFIT PARADE, FCC reports, was led by post-freeze group of 1 vhfs. Their 1958 earnings in industry's first billion-dollar year j nearly doubled 1957 profits (pp. 2 & 4). Congress EQUAL-TIME REFORM cleared for House vote by Rules Committee, which limits general debate on Harris bill to 3 hours (p. 2). NO TV QUIZ 'CIRCUS' promise of House probe of defunct bigmoney shows, says chief investigator Robert W. Lishman. Hearings still not set (p. 4). Educational TV TIMETABLE FOR BIRTH OF ETV TAPE NETWORK: 6 educational broadcasters will have recorders by month's end, virtually all by Nov. 1. Network operation due to start Jan. 1 (p. 3). Finance I j STATION EARNINGS REPORTS to stockholders show strong 6month increase for Storer; WJR-WJRT, Gross profits down (p. 20). I Manuiacturing de Distribution GOOD PICTURE-TUBE SALES herald spurt in TV output, as tube makers report extremely heavy orders, signifying receiver production step-up. No shortages seen (p. 15). ELECTRONICS 2nd-QUARTER PROFITS up 29%, as shown by aggregate of 23 representative firms. Consumer electronics firms show 317% rise, components 101% (p. 15). CAPEHART SOLD TO DYNAMIC ELECTRONICS, which will manufacture and sell Capehart line of packaged & component hi fi — including TV combinations — next year (p. 16). EMERSON IN JAPAN DEAL, orders 100,000 transistor radios from Standard Radio for sale overseas — and probably in U.S., too. GE using Japanese parts (p. 16). Stations TELECASTING-AROUND-CLOCK CLUB loses another member as WNBF-'TV halts the practice for "study & review" (p. 7). BUSINESS SOARING in Los Angeles where all 7 stations report brisk & early sales (p. 8). Auxiliary Services TELEMETER'S TORONTO TRIAL will have the cooperation of Bell Telephone, which will lay 84 miles of cable to feed pay-TV to 5000 suburban homes in mid-winter (p. 9). Other Departments FOREIGN (p. 10). PROGRAMMING (p. 10). ADVERTISING (p. 11). FILM & TAPE (p. 13). j BILLING BONANZA IN FALL TV: This will be biggest fall season in network history, with ^ total gross time billings on all 3 networks at just under the $1 80-million mark for the Oct.-Nov.-Dec. quarter, f 1 special estimates prepared by sales-research executives of ABC-TV, CBS-TV & NBC-TV indicated last week. K 1 (For breakdown, see p. 6.) j I All 3 networks show gains in all areas, day & night. Examples : CBS-TV, with jam-packed night ii time schedules since last year, is likely to edge upward only some 10% at night. ABC-TV, just coming into ^ 1 its own in weekend daytime billings, looks for a 43% jump there. There's no such thing as over-all "sales trend," networks tell us. Nearest thing to it is swing at most networks toward short-term, 13-week buying (to provide fast sponsor exits in case of program failure) ^ — and a step-up in participation & segment buying of 60-minute network-controlled shows ( although NBC^ TV also reports an upbeat of fully-sponsored 60-min. shows & groups of specials). There's considerable new business this fall distributed among all 3 networks from advertisers who . weren't on the same network last fall. At ABC-TV: Mutual of Omaha, Carnation, Consolidated Cigar, CanK ■ ada Dry, Liggett & Myers, Derby Foods, Warner-Lambert, Libby-Owens-Ford, Corning Glass, others. At lit ' CBS-TV : Norelco, Manhattan Shirt, Glidden Paints, Ovaltine, Peter Paul, Vick Chemical, Structo Toy, others. '*t[| At NBC-TV : Equitable Life, Swiss Watch Foundation, Ansco, Benrus, Sheaffer Pen, Sperry-Rand, Supp-Hose, Mennen, Webster Cigar, etc. Purchases range from big-budget specials to low-budget daytime participations.