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sales@spotsndots.com Copyright 2017.The Daily News of TV Sales Thursday, March 30, 2017

AMERICANS WORRY AS GAS PRICES RISESOME MAKING LIFESTYLE CHANGES For over two years now U.S. new vehicle sales have been driven by demand for gas-guzzling pickups and SUVs as Americans enjoyed a drop in gasoline prices. But prices at the pump have been creeping up again. At what point will that start to have an impact on car and truck sales? The AAA says the rising prices are already having an impact on lifestyles. A new AAA survey reveals that nearly a quarter of consumers believe the price at the pump is already too high. AAA projects the national average for a gallon of gasoline to increase 40 cents this summer, peaking near $2.70. To offset the increase in gas prices (about a 70 cent increase from last year at this time), more than 70% of consumers say they would make everyday lifestyle or driving habit changes. The top five changes drivers would make include: Combining errands or trips; Driving less; Reducing shopping or dining out; Delaying major purchases; and Carpooling. However, not everyone will jump to make a change. The survey found that younger Americans (18-34) are more tolerant of higher prices and less likely to change habits compared to older consumers (35 and older). “Higher gas prices are already influencing the travel industry,” said Bill Sutherland, AAA senior vice president of Travel and Publishing. But he noted that people are still planning to hit the road. “With nearly 80 percent of family travelers planning a road trip this year, higher gas prices are making shorter trips to national parks and theme parks the most desired travel destinations,” Sutherland said. During April, AAA says Americans across the country will start to see gas prices begin to climb as the industry wraps up spring maintenance and completes the switchover to summer-blend gasoline. Over the years, public opinion for whether a gallon of gasoline is too high or too low has fluctuated as much as the price itself. It’s all about expectations. When gas prices are above the $3.00 per gallon benchmark (as they were in 2013 and 2014) Americans believe prices should be 6% lower. But when gas prices are below the $3.00 benchmark (as they were in 2015 and 2016) Americans believe a 25% increase is too high. AAA’s report is based on a telephone survey conducted among two national probability samples (landline only and cell phone), which, when combined, consisted of 1,017 adults, 510 men and 507 women, 18+, living in the continental United States. Interviewing for the survey was completed on February 2-5, 2017.

ADVERTISER NEWS While a lot of what we’ve been reporting about retail has been gloomy lately, a few chains are thriving and expanding. Here’s one of those: Home décor retailer At Home same-store sales were up 7.1% for the quarter that ended on 1/28 and with aggressive expansion in the last year, total sales were up 26.4% (the eleventh straight quarter with at least 20% net sales growth). The chain ended its fiscal year with 126 stores, plans to add 25 this years, and says it sees an eventual footprint of more than

500 locations……Here’s a restaurant that beat the tough conditions in that industry: Dave & Buster’s comp-store sales were up 3.2% in its fourth fiscal quarter, completing a year with a 3.3% gain. It added eleven new locations during the year (four in the fourth fiscal quarter) and has already opened three more in the current year with another six currently under construction……Sonic Drive-

Ins however had results more typical of the restaurant industry right now: second fiscal quarter same-store sales were down 7.3% at franchise stores and off by 8.9% at company-owned locations, with the CEO citing “a sluggish consumer environment, weather headwinds, and share losses following exceptionally strong performance over the prior two years.” Ten new stores were opened during the quarter and 54 formerly company-owned locations were re-franchised. In total, over 90% of Sonic’s 3500+ drive-ins are owned by franchisees……RH (formerly called Restoration Hardware) had a tough quarter with a 9% drop in revenue with comparable brand stores (including comparable direct business via online and catalogs) down 18%. Its CEO says that’s the result of “strategic investments made to transform the brand” and “we are now through the most uncertain stages of our transformation”……Bloomberg reports that Amazon is shutting down its subsidiary Quidsi, the parent company of Diapers.com, Wag.com, Soap.com, and several other shopping sites. Amazon bought Quidsi for $545 million in 2010..... (Continued on page 3)

PAGE 2 The Daily News of TV Sales @ www.spotsndots.com

NETWORK NEWS The CW network will air the season three premiere of iZombie next Tuesday at 9 PM (ET) following the season finale of Legends of Tomorrow. The series will settle into its normal schedule airing after The Flash at 9 PM (ET) beginning the following Tuesday……ABC and toy maker Mattel have teamed up to launch a Shark Tank-like reality competition series called The Toy Box, where contestants will vie for the approval from a group of toy experts. That will be followed by a precocious panel of kid judges. The winner at the end of the season will have their toy manufactured by Mattel and sold exclusively at Toys “R” Us. The Toy Box will premiere on ABC Friday, April 7th, just before Shark Tank……Parks and Recreation alums Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman will co-host a new unscripted series for NBC called The Handmade Project. The show will feature artisans competing to impress judges with their hand-made crafts. Each episode will feature contestants taking on projects based on a new theme, with the level of difficulty increasing steadily. At the end of the season, one contestant will be named champion. The Handmade Project got a six-episode order from the network……Jimmy Fallon will host Saturday Night Live for the third time on April 15th, and will be joined by former One Direction member Harry Styles as musical guest. The appearance will mark Styles’ first solo performance debut after leaving the boy band in early 2016……NBC has announced that the 2018 Winter Olympics coverage will air live across all time zones. Jim Bell, president of NBC Olympics production and programming said, “That means social media won’t be ahead of the action in any time zone, and as a result, none of our viewers will have to wait for anything. This is exciting news for the audience, the advertisers, and our affiliates alike.” NBC’s primetime coverage of the Winter Games from PyeongChang, South Korea will begin on February 8, 2018. The Opening Ceremony will take place on Friday, February 9th. NBCUniversal announced last month that Mike Tirico will serve as the host of the primetime coverage of the 2018 Olympic Winter Games, taking over for Bob Costas, who had served in the role since 1992……Ryan Hansen has been cast as a guest star and male lead opposite Rebecca Rittenhouse in Real Life, the half-hour hybrid comedy pilot at CBS. Real Life circles around the relationship of two 20-somethings who go from being co-workers on opposite coasts to working in the same office. Hansen had a recurring role on 2 Broke Girls and co-starred in the feature film reboot of C.H.I.P.S.

ACCOUNT ACTIONS MediaPost reports that the Russell Stover chocolate brand, said to be the largest supplier of boxed chocolates in the U.S, has selected WPP’s VML, Kansas City, as agency of record after a review. The assignment includes traditional and digital advertising, social media strategy and community management, analytics and insight, PR and campaign creative……Ad Age says L.L. Bean has selected The Via Agency as its new agency of record. The brand had worked with Erwin Penland since 2014.

AVAILS WAVY-TV10 & WVBT FOX43 in the Norfolk, VA market seeks a results-driven Account Executive. The ideal candidate will be a people person who is responsible for developing large-scale new business clients and growing digital revenue! Candidates should have a minimum 2 years of media sales experience, a winning attitude and a desire to succeed! Bachelor’s degree preferred with an emphasis in Business/Marketing or Communications. To be considered for this position, please visit: Nexstar Career Center. No calls. EOE/M/F/V/D

WOGX-FOX 51 in Gainesville, FL is looking for an experienced Account Executive to handle a great account list with high income along with developing new business. Very competitive commission structure and benefits. Must be driven, detail oriented, solution based and proficient in Word/Excel, with Wide Orbit a plus. CLICK HERE for more information or to apply now. EOE/M/F/Veteran/Disabled. WFTV – ABC affiliate and Cox Media

Group television station in Orlando, FL (Market #18) seeks an Account Executive. The winning candidate will be required to grow revenue with an existing client list while also cultivating New Business and Digital revenue for the station. Candidate must have excellent presentation skills, verbal and written skills and work collaboratively with our properties. Prior broadcast TV and diverse digital sales experience preferred. CLICK HERE for more info or to apply. EOE. A leader in broadcasting has an excellent opportunity for a Director of Sales. This position is in a top 40 market and will oversee multi-stations to include a major national affiliate. The ideal candidate will have a passion and understanding to lead his/her team to build strong business growth and customers relationships. Must have 3-5 years’ experience in TV sales management and the ability to grow revenue through digital interactive and other approaches. Send cover letter and resume in confidence to apply@spotsndots.com. EOE. WIVB News 4 (CBS) and CW 23 in Buffalo, NY is looking for a Director of Sales to lead its Broadcast and Digital sales operations. We are seeking a “game changer” and proven leader who can communicate a vision, while developing a management and sales team to generate extraordinary growth. Our DOS has direct responsibility for national sales efforts. Bachelor’s degree and a minimum five years’ experience in television sales management required. CLICK HERE for additional info or to apply now. EOE/M/V/F/D

DONE DEALS Meredith Local Media Group has named Les Vann VP/GM of WHNS, the company’s Fox affiliate in Greenville, SC (DMA # 37). Previously, Vann was General Manager of WFTX in Fort Myers, FL. He’s also held GM jobs at WISH/WNDY in Indianapolis, WKRC in Cincinnati, and WTGS/WJCL in Savannah, GA, as well as stations in Illinois, Iowa, North and South Carolina and New York.

3/30/2017

Conan O’Brien

After causing a huge controversy, United Airlines

now says it will allow any paying passenger to wear leggings. So good news,

my dad can fly out for Easter after all.

The Daily News of TV Sales @ www.spotsndots.com PAGE 3

CORD-FREE HOMES DOUBLED IN FIVE YEARS According to a new report from The Diffusion Group (TDG), the proportion of U.S. broadband homes not subscribing to any traditional MVPD has increased 144% since 2011. That more than doubling of what TDG calls “Cord Nils” includes both Cord Cutters (who’ve dropped an MVPD subscription) and Cord Nevers (who never had one). “Wall Street and the media are myopically focused on the quarterly drip of Legacy Pat-TV subscribers, which unfortunately overlooks a larger and more dangerous trend,” says TDG Director of Research Michael Greeson. That trend is that as broadband—and, importantly, broadband video—expand, legacy MVPD subscriptions will increasingly decline. In 2011, 9% of the 85 million U.S. broadband households qualified as Cord Nils. At year-end 2016, the number of U.S. broadband households had topped 100 million—of which 22% were Cord Nils. “In other words, the number of broadband households living without Legacy Pay-TV has grown from just under 8 million in 2011 to 22 million by year-end 2016,” according to TDG. The report notes that broadband-based virtual MVPDs are growing. But the TDG analysts say “the stickiness of the Internet/TV bundle appears to be in decline, even before Broadband Pay-TV services gain serious footing.”

QUESTIONABLE AUTO SALES COUNTS LESSEN We’ll have March’s automotive sales results for you in next Tuesday’s issue (and the recent J.D. Power forecast predicts they will again be quite good), but there have always been ways to fudge the numbers a bit. However, after Fiat Chrysler was exposed last year for “punching” sales stats, it appears there’s now less of that going on than there was previously. Automotive News reports there are tactics automakers have done to pump up numbers, some “surreptitiously, away from the eyes of shareholders and competitors (and) in certain cases the actions tread a fine line between resourcefulness and deception.” One practice that dealers may have been involved in is “selling” a vehicle into their own fleet, then selling the vehicle later as used. The practice helps the manufacturer report better sales numbers, and could help the dealer attain a sales bonus. Some of these maneuvers can show up in a difference between reported sales numbers and new vehicle registrations by state. That difference peaked in the then record year of 2015, when 282,675 “sold” vehicles were never registered, according to IHS Markit data. Last year, however, as the Fiat Chrysler tactics came to light, the discrepancy fell by more than half to 115,404 vehicles, the smallest difference since the poor sales year of 2010. So as we do see the sales number reported by manufacturers, there’s a better chance they’re more transparent than they may have been in the past.

ADVERTISER NEWS (Continued from page 1) One of the problems the Nissan Leaf electric vehicle has been facing is a short range of just over 100 miles per charge from its lithium ion battery. Nissan is currently working on a second generation of the vehicle likely to reach dealers next year and Automotive News says the company has signaled the new version is likely to have almost double the range of the current vehicle at close to 200 miles……Daimler now says it will bring ten new electric car models to the market in the next six years, speeding up a timetable for

those introductions that had previously been set for the year 2025. “We want to shape the profound transformation of the automotive industry from the forefront,” CEO Manfred Bischoff said while adding combustion engines would continue to be refined for a “transitional period.”

MARCH MADNESS PAYS OFF The number of people watching sports on TV has passed last years number, according to analyst Brian Wieser of Pivotal Research Group. For the 13th

week of the year (ended March 26), sports viewing was up 12% year-over-year (YOY). After being down for much of the year, Wieser calculates from Nielsen data that sports viewing is now up almost 1% YOY. During the most recent week, basketball was dominant, with a 52% share of sports viewing on a person-viewing hours basis. March Madness by itself accounted for nearly 46% of the total, while NBA programming accounted for most of the remainder. Total viewing of all basketball was up 14%, with college basketball up 13%. CBS accounted for 49% of total basketball viewing, up +31% year-over-year. Time Warner’s Turner Networks accounted for 34% of basketball viewing, up 1% year-over-year.

3/30/2017

FunnyTweeter.com

When I was your age getting pictures was at least a one hour ordeal that involved other people and a lab.

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