There’s
absolutely nothing new about network clutter except that it’s getting
worse.
PhaseOne
Communications finds that the Big Four networks air about 52 minutes of
commercials and promotions during their primetime programming, up 8
percent from 2000 and a surprising 36 percent from 1991.
“Compared
to past years when fewer advertisers took up less airtime, viewers today
are exposed to commercials and promos in record numbers,” says Terry
Villines, PhaseOne’s director of analysis.
The long-term trend is that clutter continues to increase, but one
interesting finding is that the number of commercials and promos is going
up, but the number of breaks is not. Thus more clutter is squeezed into
longer pods, perhaps tricking viewers into thinking the commercials are
less noticeable.
The Big Four average 3.05 minutes per time out, a 41 percent
increase over 1998.
Over
three hours of programming, the networks average 130 commercials, and
this season’s least-watched network among total viewers, households
and adults 18-49 is actually the one with the most ads.
ABC
was first in number of spots, 152, and total promotion time, 54.6
minutes. Adults 18-49 leader NBC had the longest average break time at
3.6 minutes, but the fewest total number of breaks.
Households
No. 1 CBS averaged the least promotion time at 50.8 minutes per night
while Fox averaged the fewest number of commercials, 130.
Of
course, another thing this means for advertisers is that it’s a
challenge to get your product noticed, especially when there’s at
least 2 more minutes of commercials surrounding your ad.
According
to PhaseOne, the increase in commercials is driving viewer dropoff, seen
on almost all of the networks this year. Three months into the season,
the Big Four networks are down 2 percent in total viewers and 4 percent
among 18-49s.
Past
studies by IPSOS-ASI have shown that clutter decreases the recall rate
for ads. It’s not just a broadcast problem, either. Cable clutter is
rising at a similar rate to broadcast, and was actually approaching its
rate according to recent studies.
Four years ago, primetime clutter grew at a rate of 7 percent during the
fourth quarter alone, according to research by J. Walter Thompson. Then
cable clutter was increasing at a faster rate, 11 to 17 percent for the
top four networks.
Through the past few years, ABC has generally remained the most
cluttered in primetime, devoting the most time to commercial and
promotion breaks.
