Corus Entertainment’s upfront presentation at Scotiabank Theatre in Toronto yesterday came with announcements of expanded sponsorship and integration opportunities – both pre-packaged and custom, on air and online – across all three of its women’s specialty networks – CosmoTV, Viva and the W Network.
Noting the various ways partners can work with Corus’ women’s channels, director of sales Marilyn Orecchio emphasized that the specialty channels now capture women of all ages and at all stages.
On CosmoTV, which targets the net’s youngest demo (women aged 18 to 34), the second annual Bachelor Search is back for season 2, and with it title sponsorship opps that bow content-rich packages spanning on-air spots and branded content within CosmoTV’s flagship magazine series Oh So Cosmo (including lower thirds, top 12-segments and a downloadable oh-so-sexy bachelor calendar). Title sponsorship packages also extend online within CosmoTV.ca and Wnetwork.com microsites and contest sites, as well as through mobile marketing. Exposure in a co-branded ad in Cosmopolitan magazine’s split run for Canada to promote the CosmoTV Bachelor Search is also part of the deal.
Sponsorship packages for both season two of The Rachel Zoe Project and Lipstick Jungle, also on CosmoTV, include brand extension opportunities through in-show trivia, 30-second on-air promotion spots with 5-second tags, 10-second closed captioning and two- to five-second billboards. Lipstick Jungle will also have mini-sneak previews on W Network, providing additional exposure.
Over on the wider-demo-skewing W Network, which targets the 25-to-54 set, there’s a new Canadian production in the works, announced last night and set to air early 2010: How to Look Good Naked Canada of which details including sponsorship packages are expected early next month. Other new original productions launching this fall on W include Eat Yourself Sexy in September, Big Voice in October and currently going into production, Anna & Kristina’s Style Bag in November.
New Adventures of Old Christine is being stripped in evening comedy blocks, while movies, which Orecchio notes continue to be a big ratings driver for Corus, will come in new themed blocks on all three of its women’s networks.
W Expert Search is back again early next year, and is also open to title sponsorship. The show, which will be heavily promoted on air and online, has viewers uploading videos to the net’s site within categories provided and has the top vote-getters participating in three on-air specials, while the winner gets a development deal with W Network.
Over on Viva, which focuses on the boomer audience (women 35 to 64), new acquisitions for Viva Cuisine, also open to sponsorship, include Spain On the Road featuring Gwyneth Paltrow, and two Canadian original series: Fearless in the Kitchen starring Christine Cushing; and Chef Worthy, a new cook-off series launching this August.
Viva also includes themed programming blocks like Crime in Prime which features series like The Closer and Cold Case, as well as a two-month-long Crowns & Corsets programming event, which also comes with special sponsorship packages. The blocks will feature back-to-back films every Sunday in September and October.
Orecchio also announced that all three women’s channels are relaunching their websites (WNetwork.com, CosmoTV.ca, MyViva.ca) this summer, with redesigned site architecture focused on increasing unique visitors and engagement through social network features and user-generated content as well as photo and video repositories.
WNetwork.com relaunches July 29. With a focus on the net’s W Experts, advertising can be aligned with categories like beauty and style, food and health, home and garden, money, relationships or shopping. Sponsorship includes category-exclusive advertising roadblocks online within the sponsored sections, run-of-site branded media and logo presence within the co-branded contest. On air, a 30-second contest spot and a five-second sponsorship branded tag within the promotional spot is also available.
