Bravo picks up three
Specialty net Bravo has picked up three new series for fall. Beginning Tuesday, Sept. 6 at 7:30 p.m. and airing weekly is a 13-part series entitled Roots ‘n Roll. The series features interviews, performances and videos from today’s most popular roots musicians such as Mary Chapin Carpenter and Shawn Colvin.
Beginning Wednesday, Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m., La Radio is slated to premiere. This four-parter in French with English subtitles examines the golden age of French radio (1922-1952) in Quebec and profiles the people who made it that way. The series airs weekly.
On Saturday, Sept. 3 at 7 p.m., What a Circus! hits TV screens. The 13-part, weekly series in French with English subtitles takes viewers to Switzerland, Germany, Norway, France and Belgium as it explores the lives of Quebecois artists performing in different circuses around the world.
History looks to the future
History Television has unveiled its slate of new shows for fall. Full Throttle is an example of the ever-permutating genres of TV shows these days. It combines history, reality and renovation, transforming classic cars to be ready for the drag strip but looking into the history of the models as well. The program airs Mondays at 8 p.m., beginning Sept. 5.
Beginning Sept. 6, Over There is an ensemble drama from Steven Bochco about an army unit sent to Iraq and the effects of their tour of duty on their families back home. The show airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m.
On Sept. 7, Digging for the Truth begins tracking explorer and survival expert Josh Bernstein as he takes a fresh look at ancient mysteries and remote corners of the world. Truth is out there Wednesdays at 9 p.m.
Heading into October, Things That Move examines how innovation and history have combined to create different modes of movement, from the toboggan to the elevator. Things get moving weekdays at 6 p.m., beginning Oct. 3.
Also preeming in October is the network premiere of JAG – specific airdates TBA. Another network debut is Band of Brothers, which will begin Nov. 3 and run Thursdays at 9 p.m. The 10-part mini-series originally aired on HBO.
And finally history takes to the skies with Bomber Boys, a group of adventurous young men who volunteer to re-live their grandfathers’ wartime experiences. The series will air as part of History’s annual ‘Week of Remembrance’ Nov. 7-11 at 8 p.m.
History Television has 5.8 million subscriber households. Its audience skews male 65% and its largest demo is adults 35-64 at 55%, according to Nielsen Media Research.
PMB Factoid
Women who use lipstick are 25% more likely to be heavy readers of PMB publications
Analysis: Media buyers weigh in on fall TV primetime winners: Friday nights
This is the last in a five-part series (Part one: MIC June 30/05) that asks broadcast pundits’ opinions on who’s in, who’s out and who doesn’t stand a chance during the most coveted – and competitive – weeknight timeslots of 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Go to www.mediaincanada.com and click on ‘TV Programming Grids’ for visual aids. Next up: ‘The Word on Fall in Montreal,’ a two-part series coming next week.
Sheila Malanchuk, media strategy manager at OMD Vancouver, has lots of opinions about the 8 p.m. timeslot. ‘Ghost Whisperer [on CTV] has gotten some bad feedback. It’s not the best replacement for Joan of Arcadia. I don’t see the old Joan audience wanting to see Ghost Whisperer. It’s more like a Medium but not as well done. I just don’t see a lot of potential with that show,’ she says about the new Jennifer Love Hewitt entry.
HNIC is back and seeking sponsors for vignettes, pool
Holy puck! Hockey’s back and for many, none too soon. The CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada returns to TV screens with a vengeance on Saturday, Oct. 8. More games will be offered in high-definition this year, promises Joel Darling, executive producer of the show, though he says plans for how many and which games are yet to be determined.
New this year is the addition of long-time hockey announcer Jim Hughson. He will call the second game during Saturday night double headers. Also new this year for the long-standing brand is a two-years-in-the-making project entitled Think Hockey.
Oxy urges teen boys to ‘win your face off’
Acne product giant Oxy has sponsored four key snowboarding and skateboarding events this year as part of a promo aimed at teen boys. ‘We found in our research that more boys use Oxy than girls,’ explains product manager Kara Hale. ‘So we were looking for a fit with no overt advertising; we wanted to immerse our product within their lifestyle. And snowboarding and skateboarding was the way in.’ The result? A national contest that urges teens to ‘win your face off.’
Running from Aug. 15 until Oct. 31, the contest is giving away skateboards from HogTown Extreme Sports, free music downloads from Puretracks, Motorola cellphones and PF Flyers shoes. The grand prize consists of a Norco SM-PRO XL bike, a $1,000 gift certificate from HogTown and an iPod. POS materials with an SMS component and TV and print buys will support the contest. Instant prizes will be given away daily, weekly and monthly for online and SMS entries. Coupons and ‘thunder sticks’ doled out at sponsored events will be used to drive eyeballs (and now, fingers) to the oxy.ca Web site. The Mentholatum Company bought Oxy in December 2004.
http://www.oxy.ca
Toronto Star gets its weekly star Scoop
The Toronto Star is getting into the celeb rag biz. Joining the ranks of People, In Touch and the relaunching TV Guide will be the Star’s own glossy Celebrity Scoop. The top of the masthead will have Kathryn Swan as publisher (formerly of Money Sense) and Vivian Vassos (of Flare) as editor-in-chief. Celebrity Scoop will be available across the country on newsstands every week beginning Oct. 3.
Nielsen Media Research Spend Trend: Outdoor living
With winters being what they are in most of the country, Canadians start spending much of their time outdoors as soon as the snow melts. The passion to optimize our short summer season has spawned a steadily growing outdoor living category that more than doubled its media spending between 2001 and 2004. Dailies are the hot medium for the category, growing from 58.0% of the spending in 2001 to capturing 83.5% in 2003 and 80.7% last year. The biggest spenders are in the doors/windows/glass enclosure/greenhouse/garden building businesses.
ComBase Market Focus: High weekday readership for community newspapers in the Vancouver CMA
* 75% of Vancouver CMA (central market area) adults report reading any community newspaper weekday. This represents more than 1.2 million community newspaper readers.
* 57% of Vancouver adults report reading any weekday daily newspaper (909,400).
* 23% of Vancouver adults are exclusive community newspaper readers. 367,900 people report reading only their community paper and not a daily newspaper.
Weekday readership of community newspapers vs. dailies in all Vancouver municipalities:
* In Burnaby – 63% report reading community papers compared to 57% reading dailies.
* In Coquitlam – 82% report reading community papers compared to 68% reading dailies.
* In Delta – 82% report reading community papers compared to 51% reading dailies.
* In Langley – 79% report reading community papers compared to 48% reading dailies.
* In Maple Ridge – 88% report reading community papers compared to 51% reading dailies.
* In New Westminster – 73% report reading community papers compared to 46% reading dailies.
* In North Vancouver – 81% report reading community papers compared to 66% reading dailies.
* In Pitt Meadows – 75% report reading community papers compared to 48% reading dailies.
* In Port Coquitlam – 67% report reading community papers compared to 37% reading dailies.
* In Port Moody – 65% report reading community papers compared to 33% reading dailies.
* In Richmond – 76% report reading community papers compared to 65% reading dailies.
* In Surrey – 77% report reading community papers compared to 55% reading dailies
* In the city of Vancouver – 71% report reading community papers compared to 58% reading dailies.
* In White Rock – 87% report reading community papers compared to 30% reading dailies.
Source: ComBase 2003-2004 Study
ComBase, the Community Newspaper Database, is a syndicated consumer-media survey of more than 400 Canadian markets that provides market-by-market information. It is an initiative of the Canadian Community Newspaper Association and its nearly 700 members across the country. For more information, contact Kelly Levson, senior project manager, kellylevson@combase.ca.
Research Watch: PMB wraps doc study
PMB has released the 2005 Medical Media Study. The study, conducted by PMB since 2000, uses a random sample of 3,000 GPs and other physicians to measure the readership of 31 publications, and also covers medical activities, including drug prescribing patterns. For instance, Canadian physicians prescribe on average 12.3 non-narcotic analgesics per week, 11.7 antibiotics and 10.1 anticholesterols. Plus, physicians write 3.3 prescriptions per week for erectile difficulty drugs.
Kelley taps into reality with Law Firm
CTV has a new series premiering tonight at 8 p.m. The Law Firm is a David E. Kelley (The Practice) offspring and features 12 cutthroat lawyers arguing real court cases with real judges and juries. The attorneys work as teams, which is sometimes difficult as each has a strong personality. Each ep at least one legal beagle gets the boot, based on their performance and not whether they won the case. The last solicitor standing gets (shock) big bucks. Target aud is CTV’s usual mass 18+.
(Prison) Breaking news
Prison Break, which got some good buzz in the up-fronts is debuting Monday, Aug. 29 on Global with a two-hour premiere. The drama follows a man who schemes his way into prison to help his brother plot their way out. The show unveils at 8 p.m. in Ontario/Quebec/British Columbia; 7 p.m. in Manitoba/Saskatchewan and 9 p.m. in the Maritimes/Alberta.
Mystery, mentv preem two
Two of the Global Specialty Networks are unveiling some new fodder. Mystery is featuring Legends and Lore: The North Atlantic, which mines the rich vein of folklore and epic tales from that region of ghost ships and furry mermen. The program debuts Saturday, Aug. 6 at 8 p.m.
Meanwhile mentv has hired The Office Temps, a hidden camera series looking into the world of temporary employment. Three temps get assigned to an office that is actually a staged work environment at a phony company with, one supposes, hilarious results. The office opens Saturday, Aug. 6 at 10 p.m.
http://www.canwestglobal.com
John st. spreads ’em
You’re not crazy – that billboard for a law firm is covered with butter. Toronto-based agency john st. created a unique media campaign for butter brand Gay Lea touting the product’s spreadability.
The tagline ‘You’ll want to spread it on everything’ is illustrated in TV and outdoor executions; the latter features faux billboards – hawking sleazy lawyers and plastic surgeons – covered in butter, running over from adjacent Gay Lea billboards.
