Showcase chauffeurs in premium fall TV lineup
From pushing boundaries to chauffeuring people home, the new Showcase campaign has it all. The lofty effort, called ‘Showcase at 10,’ drives home three messages: Showcase pushes boundaries; Showcase has premium, risqué shows; and, the shows are on nightly at 10 p.m. Most notably, Showcase is branding a fleet of five black Chrysler 300s, to be used as makeshift taxis to rush people home – for free – in time to catch Showcase’s 10 p.m. lineup. The cars will be equipped with TVs running promo reels for the fall lineup, which includes premium cable shows picked up from HBO and Showtime like Rescue Me, Weeds and The L Word.
‘The main objective is to get people to make an appointment at 10 p.m.,’ explains director of marketing Muriel Solomon. ‘We’re hoping people will talk about the fleet…and that radio stations will pick up on it.’
Toronto 1 now Sun TV as part of $110 million convergence and consolidation
Eight months after being bought by Quebecor Media, Toronto 1 has been rebranded Sun TV. The new identity was unveiled yesterday as Quebecor outlined a $110 million investment in its Ontario Sun Media properties. The plan involves a convergence of the styles and formats of the Toronto Sun and 24 hours newspapers, Sun TV, and Canoe.ca as well as the physical move of Sun TV to join the others in the Toronto newspaper’s King St. location.
The convergence of the media properties is being described by Quebecor as a cross-pollination resulting in a format that will provide a strong sense of community on-air, online, and in the newspaper. The company expects the plan will make the company more competitive, enable it to offer higher-quality content, increase advertising sales and boost the power of its events and promotions. These changes are being positioned as a rejuvenation of Sun Media that will also see the Toronto Sun return to its roots as a community-focused newspaper. To that end, the paper is expected to announce a number of high-profile hires in the near future.
Teletoon and Hubba Bubba let kids choose programs
For the third year in a row, Teletoon is again partnering with bubble gum company Hubba Bubba in a co-promo called the Hubba Bubba Power Hour. From September 2 to October 16, kids can log on to teletoon.com and vote for Hubba or Bubba’s block of never-before-seen cartoon episodes of shows Duck Dodgers and What’s New, Scooby Doo?. The winning programming block — each of the two blocks is branded with a new flavour of Hubba Bubba Tape — will air every Saturday morning beginning at 8 a.m. for four consecutive Saturdays. Kids can also win a branded prize pack.
Unlike past co-promos that were strictly online initiatives, this year’s promotion adds an on-air element that lets kids do the programming. ‘This year, we’ve kicked it up a notch [by allowing] kids to have a say on what we air on Teletoon at the same time as they are interacting with Hubba and Bubba,’ says Melissa Liard, publicist for the net. ‘[This] adds another element of interactivity to our website.’ Toronto-based ad agency OMD played matchmaker.
BBM media snapshot: Canadians and power boating
* 900,000 Canadians (3%) regularly enjoy power boating (when in season). 51% of regular power boating users are middle age adults (35-54 years old).
* Regular power boaters are more likely to be men (60%) than women (40%).
* The average personal yearly income of regular power boaters is $39,500 (1.3 times greater than the national average).
* They are highly involved in all the water sports. Regular power boaters go fishing 2 times more often than the national average; go water skiing 5 times more; canoeing 2 times more; and jet ski riding 4 times more than the national average.
* Consumer shows are also of interest to power boaters. Last year, regular power boaters attended boat shows 6.8 times more than the national average; sportsman/outdoors shows 4.6 times more; RV shows 3.8 times more; cottage shows 5 times more; and motorcycle show 3 times more than the national average.
* Power boaters are 2.2 times more likely to drive a pickup truck; 2 times more likely to drive a sports utility vehicle; and 1.4 times more likely to drive a minivan compared to the national average.
* Regular power boaters drive their vehicles 20,800 km per year on average while Canadian adults (18+) drive their vehicles an average of 16,000 km per year.
* TV (88%), radio (84%), the Internet (59%), and daily newspapers (49%) are top four media as of yesterday’s exposure for power boaters.
* The top radio formats listened to by regular power boaters (weekly reach) are: adult contemporary, classic mainstream rock (1.5 times more than the national average) news talk, and hot adult contemporary (1.4 times more than the national average).
Source: BBM RTS Canada Fall ’04 / Spring ’04, individuals 12+
The preceding information is from BBM RTS, a syndicated consumer-media survey of over 60,000 Canadians, conducted twice a year by BBM Canada. For more information contact Craig Dorning of BBM Canada: cdorning@bbm.ca.
Global to air Entertainment Tonight Canada
Just in time for the Toronto International Film Festival, CanWest announced the launch of a new celeb magazine show Entertainment Tonight Canada (ET Canada) this morning. The net’s Cheryl Hickey will host the half-hour program, which will air daily at 7 p.m. beginning Monday, Sept. 12 on Global Ontario and Quebec. MuchMusic grad Rick Campanelli, Rosey Edeh, formerly of CTV’s E-Talk, Kim D’eon of the CBC’s The Hour fame and Roz Weston from Toronto 1’s A-List have also signed on as reporters.
ET Canada will be produced in partnership with its sister show in the U.S., and according to a release, the show will have Canuck and American production teams working in tandem daily. Branding for the new show will remain almost identical to the original with similar graphics and the rights to use the ET theme song. Under the ET brand, the Canuck version will have access to archives containing 24 years of exclusive history and info. The difference? ET Canada‘s segments will retain a Canadian perspective, emphasizing Canadian talent and (hopefully) boosting the image of Canada as Hollywood North.
Discovery rides shotgun with new series
Could this be the end for road rage? Specialty net Discovery is launching a new series entitled Canada’s Worst Driver, an eight-part hour-long series that looks at eight participants, all nominated by a friend, colleague or family member, and their habits behind the wheel. The show puts the group through the Driver’s Rehabilitation Centre as a panel of experts consisting of a racecar driver, a behavioural psychologist, an automotive journalist and the director of training at the Young Drivers of Canada, evaluates their progress. The show is modeled after Britain’s Worst Driver, a hit series across the pond. Canada’s Worst Driver settles into its regular time slot on Monday, Oct. 3 at 10 p.m.
History TV to air series about Things that Move
Specialty net History is getting ready to air new half-hour series Things that Move, a 20-parter that examines everything mobile – from bicycle to Zamboni and everything in between. Things that Move, slated to air beginning October 3, will be hosted by Jeff Douglas, a.k.a. ‘Joe Canadian,’ the man who made the Molson ‘I Am Canadian’ rant famous.
National Geographic to air Megacities
National Geographic channel is showing mega-series Megacities on Sunday, Sept. 18. Eight hour-long episodes will air back-to-back beginning at 12 p.m. with repeats beginning at 8 p.m. The series goes in-depth to examine the cities’ ‘vital organs’ such as power grids, transportation systems and water supply. Megacities will look at the urban centers of Las Vegas, Mexico City, Hong Kong, London, Paris, Sao Paulo, Mumbai and New York.
Event
September 29-30
1st Annual At-Retail Media Expo
New York Hilton Towers, NYC
http://www.atretailmedia.com
The first ever show discusses alternative solutions to diminishing mass media choices and successful ways to buy media at the retail level. The event also offers an opportunity for marketers and retailers to learn to verify and measure at-retail media using new technologies.
PMB Factoid
Canadians who drink rum; by city
Nike football series seeking Canuck broadcaster
Toronto-based TV production company Chokolat is looking for a Canadian broadcaster to pick up four-part half-hour series Full Ride. The series was sponsored by Nike and produced for ESPN. Full Ride follows six American high school football seniors through the recruitment process, from a camp attended by more than 200 college coaches and scouts to the final decision as to who will get a ‘full ride’ scholarship.
‘This is real human drama,’ explains Jeff Spriet, president of Chokolat and executive producer of the series. ‘We followed these kids from their hometowns and met their families, parents, high school coaches.’ Spriet explains that in the U.S., Full Ride debuted this month, and is slated to re-air 10 more times.
Global goes guerilla to promo fall
If you’re a subway commuter, prepare to see a lot more of Global this fall. As part of Global’s fall programming promo push, viewers in the Toronto and Vancouver markets will be inundated by creative touting new shows Prison Break, Apprentice: Martha Stewart, E-Ring, and Bones on their way to work. The net is using unusual media executions to amp up the buzz factor including subway domination and street teams complete with TVs on their heads.
‘We want to increase the buzz around the shows and the way we’re trying to do that is to get people talking about the ads which, in turn, should bring buzz around the shows,’ says Walter Levitt, SVP of marketing. The net bought a lot of media. Along with traditional routes such as radio, print and on-air promos, Global has cut a 60-second trailer to promo new series Prison Break. That trailer is currently running in theatres across Canada and is heavily positioning the show much like a feature movie, complete with movie posters.
Young entrepreneurs make a statement with ad idea
Talk about justification for higher education. New kid(s) on the ad block Toronto-based Statements Media, the brainchild of young entrepreneurs Adam Watson and Joseph Magnotta has just signed deals with coffee-and-donuts chain Country Style and the Bay’s private label Komandor Closets. Statements Media, which started out as a University of Western Ontario school project, takes the popular notion – at least in the U.S. – of printing ads directly on dry cleaning poly bags. In its first month of business, the company has plans to distribute more than 125,000 dry cleaning bags all over the GTA through its network of dry cleaners including larger chains such as Sketchley’s, London and Top Hat Cleaners. Plans are in place to double that amount next month.
‘This is the first time in Canada that this is being done,’ says Watson. ‘What we’re offering is exclusivity as no bag will share ad space with any other brand.’ A one-month distribution cycle for a two-colour ad bears a price tag between $9,950 up to just under $40,000, depending on how many bags are purchased by the advertiser. Plus, Statements offers geo-targeting for SMEs looking for smaller distribution networks. As a means of tracking, ad bags for Komandor will drive those who see it to the Komandor Web site at www.bayclosets.ca. Both Komandor and Country Style ad bags are slated to roll out tomorrow.
http://www.makeyourstatement.ca
Who could use some expert branded entertainment advice?
MIC Forum update
Managing a brand? Want some free ideas for it? As part of the September 20 Media in Canada Forum, panelists including Steve Meraska of Starcom MediaVest and Jeff Spriet of Chokolat will be providing branded entertainment solutions for one lucky marketer. The session entitled ‘Make the Brand the Star’ is looking for a marketer who is interested in participating in this theoretical pitch format. If you would like to join the panel, contact strategy‘s editorial director Mary Maddever at mmaddever@brunico.com.
Other media bigwigs confirmed for this day-long Toronto event organized by Media In Canada, include Alliance Atlantis Communications executive chair Michael MacMillan, Chum president & CEO Jay Switzer and Transcontinental Media president André Préfontaine. These three top media execs will discuss how their organizations are responding to the changing communications landscape, with ZenithOptimedia president and CEO Sunni Boot moderating the debate.
And on the creative front, Paul Woolmington, head chef at the Media Kitchen in NYC, will be joined by Amsterdam-based Brian Elliott, CEO of Strawberry Frog along with Brett Marchand of Lowe Roche to discuss the strengths of traditional agencies, media agencies and hybrid shops, as creative custodians of the brand. For more info on MIC Forum: What’s The Plan?, check out the full agenda:
http://www.mediaincanada.com/forum
