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Published on October 05, 2009

Posted by Paul Christ

Hit TV Shows Have Most-Skipped Ads (New York Times)

While this is a relatively short story, the implications are important for major television advertisers.  If as reported, DVR owners are most likely to skip through the big shows than big advertisers are likely to reconsider what they are spending since big shows often command higher ad fees.

The company said that nearly all of the television shows that won 2009 Emmys showed higher levels of ad-skipping than the averages for their respective genres. The sole exception was “30 Rock,” 64 percent of whose audience skipped the commercials, as opposed to 66 percent for all sitcoms generally.

Can advertisers still capture viewers’ attention as they are fast forwarding?

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Published on October 01, 2009

Posted by Paul Christ

Wal-Mart Supersizes Holiday Toy Program (MSNBC)

I’m not sure October 1 is the official start to the holiday shopping season but it sure seems that way with this story about Wal-Mart’s plans for toy pricing.  In an effort to get a jump on everyone else it looks like Wal-Mart's PR team did a nice job as they got loads of publicity on their announcement of $10 dollar toys.  Even with Wal-Mart’s immense buying power, most of these toys (over 100 of them) will probably serve as loss leaders.

The $10 assortment includes newly introduced toys, such as certain Transformers action figures and a Play-Doh burger builder set, as well as existing items, such as Monopoly and Connect 4, whose prices have been cut 20 percent to 50 percent.

What is the likely response from both large and small competitors?  Can they afford to match prices or will they need to compete in other ways?

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Published on October 01, 2009

Posted by Paul Christ

Take a Chance on Experimenting (BusinessWeek)

Products that break new ground, especially in the high-tech field, are very difficult to find but if a company is lucky enough the results can be the difference between being the well-to-do market leader (e.g., Apple) and the struggling-to-survive follower (e.g., Palm).  This story takes a look at what it might take to push the envelope for product development through methods dubbed “disruptive innovation” which includes a heavy emphasis on experimentation.

When working in high-assumption, low-knowledge environments, it is prudent to take a disruptive path to market by systematically testing assumptions and shifting the path forward as necessary. The goal is to run early experiments to gain critical pieces of information that can enable flexibility and increase the odds of success at a lower price tag.

Besides Apple, what other companies are known for their efforts to push the envelope on new product development?