Archive for October 19th, 2006
NBC’s Brian Williams mentioned today’s layoffs on The Daily Nightly blog. “Nothing about the mission of NBC News changed today. It never will,” he wrote. “Just as there are new hot spots in the world, and just as we have been opening new bureaus to reflect that reality, we must also change to reflect a new electronic reality…. If, at any time, the actions taken by my company today end up compromising our mission to gather and report the news, I will make my feelings known loudly and promptly.”
October 19th, 2006
The networks have released a few stats from their ongoing show streaming initiatives. NBC says it’s streamed 5 million individual show episodes to date. ABC says it streamed 2.5 million in the first two weeks. CBS won’t release stats, but the network says streaming traffic grew 300 percent since the first week. NBC says its most popular show is Heroes, and CBS says it’s Jericho (both are sci-fi and by definition attract a tech-savvy audience.) Finally, the ABC World News webcast was streamed 226,000 times in September, up from 62,000 times in February.
October 19th, 2006
New video stats from Comscore puts Fox Interactive and MySpace at the top of the video heap with a 20 percent share of the U.S. online video market in August. The rankings:
1. Fox Interactive (1.4 billion streams)
2. Yahoo (823 million)
3. YouTube (688 million)
4. Viacom Digital (284 million)
5. Time Warner (238 million)
6. Microsoft (186 million)
7. Google Video (102 million)
8. Ebaumsworld (53 million)
9. Comcast (45 million)
10. Real Networks (44 million)
“Our data illustrate that the top-ranked sites by streaming activity do not directly correspond to the most trafficked sites, rebutting the sole use of traffic as a gauge of video consumption,” said Erin Hunter, EVP of comScore’s Media and Entertainment Group. Clearly. Look how low Google Video is on the list.
Recently: MySpace makes subtle shifts to emphasize video
October 19th, 2006
People who work in TV news have been surprisingly resistant to change over the last few years, even with clear signs that technology is drastically changing the business. Today’s announcement by NBCU to slash 750 jobs and redirect much of the savings to digital ventures should be a big wake up call. “Either you drown or you ride the wave,” said NBC News chief Steve Capus about 2.0, which he calls a necessary response to the “tsunami” of change. In a nutshell, TV news staffers need to quickly expand their skill sets and become proactive about contributing content on multiple platforms. They now have to compete with a tech-savvy workforce for these new digital positions. (Recent events have shown that media companies do not automatically shift TV staffers to the web. They lay them off and hire someone else who’s qualified.) And I also believe it’s critical that we redefine the nature of news and expand its boundaries. The WSJ reported this morning that NBC “sees limited growth potential in the news business” and that “most of the initial layoffs will come in the company’s 11 news divisions.” I would challenge the definition of “news” and focus on innovating new products that engage our users through the marriage of information and technology. While it won’t look anything like TV news, it will still inform, educate and enlighten. And journalism will still play an important role.
October 19th, 2006
A key paragraph in TV Week’s story on NBC 2.0 this morning:
The NBC News unit will absorb a number of operations, including business-news cable channel CNBC, which has not previously reported to news. NBC News will also spread its umbrella over MSNBC.com employees (most of whom are housed on Microsoft’s Redmond, Washington, campus) and the news operations of NBC-owned TV stations, along with the Telemundo network and local news efforts.
UPDATE: An NBC spokesperson tells TVNewser that this is not true. “NBC News will NOT absorb CNBC…. None of the reporting structures at MSNBC.com, the owned stations, Telemundo or local news will change as a result of TV 2.0.”
October 19th, 2006
NBC Universal Chairman and CEO Bob Wright announced this morning a new strategic initiative called NBCU 2.0 that involves cutting 700 jobs and $750 million in expenses by the end of 2008. In many cases, Wright says the savings will be reinvested in digital projects which are projected to bring in $1 bilion in 2009. “This initiative is designed to help us exploit technology and focus our resources, as we continue our transformation into a digital media company for the 21st century,” said Wright. NBCU 2.0 also involves moving MSNBC’s operations in Secaucus to 30 Rock in New York and Englewood Cliffs in New Jersey (where CNBC is based.) NBC is also looking for ways to consolidate news coverage that places new emphasis “on regionalized news programming with local content in some smaller markets.” More in the press release…
Read the full post October 19th, 2006
The MSNBC operations in Secaucus, NJ, will close down and move to Rockefeller Center and another site in New Jersey, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. It’s part of an overall plan by NBCU to cut $750 million in operating expenses by the end of the year. NBCU’s news budget will be slashed, with most of the company’s 700 job cuts coming from its news division. Meantime, B&C writes: “NBC U has been considering drastic measures, including scrapping all of MSNBC’s live programming and switching to a taped, magazine-like format, while switching successful personalities Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann over to sibling CNBC’s primetime slate.”
October 19th, 2006
