Cable
For Spike, pursuit of the elusive male
By Kevin Downey
Apr 18, 2008 - 8:42:17 AM

Five years later and heading into the upfront ad market, Spike TV may finally have figured out how to be that network.

It's boosted its ratings close to those on other men’s networks like Comedy Central. And while it still lacks a signature series like Comedy’s “South Park,” over the past couple of years it's put on heavily male-skewing shows like “The Ultimate Fighter” that have pushed it into the top 12 among 18-34s.

More are coming.

“The brand is resonating better than it ever has,” says Robert Friedman, senior vice president of programming at Spike. “It’s a channel for guys, where they feel comfortable and increasingly know what to expect. And we’re increasingly delivering on the promise.”

The network’s identity
All this comes after a few rough years for Spike.

It got off to a bumpy start with low-rated shows like the animated “Stripperella” with Pamela Anderson and a nasty legal tangle with director Spike Lee over the use of Spike in its name.

It also struggled finding the men it so anxiously sought. For some four years, its top show was "CSI,” as it turned out a favorite among women, and that skewed the network audience.

Heads rolled in 2005 and Doug Herzog, one-time Fox entertainment president, took over. Since then, Spike has been redoubling its focus on men while sprinkling in mass-reach programming to boost its overall audience numbers.

The network’s target audience
Spike targets men 18-34 and 18-49 but its focus sometimes gets murky because it also airs shows intended to boost its overall viewership numbers.
“CSI,” for instance, is still on despite its appeal to women.

The network’s ratings
Spike TV ranked No. 11 in total primetime viewers in first quarter. It was up 15 percent from the year-earlier period, to nearly 1.4 million viewers.

It ranked in the top 10 among 18-49s and 25-54s, with both demos posting modest increases. It was down 3 percent in 18-34s, to 298,000 viewers.

Spike got a ratings boost earlier this month airing the "Star Wars” film trilogy, and the final installment became its highest-rated movie airing ever.

“They have to be pretty satisfied,” says Brad Adgate, senior vice president and corporate research director at Horizon Media. “They found a pretty strong niche in young men, which is a tough audience to reach because they’re doing a lot of things other than watching TV.”

The network’s competitive set
Spike has plenty of competitors for young men, including sister networks Comedy and MTV, but also Adult Swim and sports networks like ESPN.

What’s new for 2008/09
Spike TV has been putting on new shows like “I Bet You Will,” which debuted last night. In "Bet," people are dared to do things like pee in their pants.

“MANswers,” which debuted last fall, has scantily clad women doing things like crushing beer cans with their breasts. “DEA,” about drug enforcement officers, debuted a few weeks ago.

Other shows are in the works, including “Factory,” a semi-scripted comedy that will air this summer. It also plans repeats of “Married with Children” and an updated version of the old “Unsolved Mysteries.”

In the fall, it will begin airing reruns of “CSI: NY.”

Spike has been adding original movies like “Urban Justice” with Steven Seagal, which aired in February, and it has an original cop show in the works called “S.I.S.”

It’s also rolling out more original movies, including “Finish Line” with Scott Baio, which airs this coming Monday.

The network’s upfront outlook
On a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being excellent: 3.5.

Spike TV is in pretty good shape going into the upfront. Its focus on young men has been getting clearer and it’s been adding shows that fit well into its brand.

It’s also a top-12 network in every major demographic with mostly improving ratings.