Turner Networks’ High-Tech, High-Impact Event:  Upfront News and Views

Venue:  Madison Square Garden Theater, home to an event of this nature for the second time in three weeks. (Hulu held court first week of May.) Attendees expecting a perfunctory breakfast service before show time were in for some unexpected surprises.  The long hallway from the street-level escalators into the main lobby was redecorated as the "Hall Of Screens," one of the top attractions of Turner's NewFront event two weeks earlier.  When someone pressed their finger against a bite-sized video of Turner content displayed on either side of the hall, the picture automatically blew up for several seconds.  Then, from spaces at either end of the main lobby, you could pick up a phone and have a video conversation with a celebrity backstage.  Two phones were in use at each station, and once someone launched a conversation, it was hard to stop. (I talked with two co-stars of Angie Tribeca and cast members from Search Party and Wrecked.)  To my knowledge, this is the first pre-show undertaking of its kind at this type of event.  Grade: 5 Jacksfor the videophones; 4.5 Jacks for the overall scene.

Presentation:  All about variety from start to finish, out to demonstrate both the scope of original programming this group of channels offers to the variety of experiences viewers get when they tune in. For some segments, talent brought their A-plus game.  For others, Turner executives waxed on about their drive for constant innovation with content or content delivery.  "We're in the thick of a top-to-bottom rebuild of our product," acknowledged Turner Entertainment Chief Creative Officer Kevin Reilly.  "If you don't (innovate), you're dead in the water."

"Make the experience matter," declared Turner Ad Sales President Donna Speciale.  On her side of the business, that includes reducing the load and size of commercial interruptions on truTV and TNT original series, and partnering with Fox and Viacom on OpenAP, the new cross-platform measurement and audience targeting resource.  For the second year in a row, Speciale called on all TV networks and the advertising community to cut the amount and length of commercial breaks year-round.  Limited ad inventory produces greater brand recall and deeper program engagement by viewers – and, ultimately, ad time worth paying more for. "It's now time for you to do your part," Speciale advised.

Leave it to an interview involving three men from different areas of the company -- TBS late-night host Conan O'Brien (hot off nailing a four-year contract extension with a wide-open pathway of content opportunities), Turner Sports studio analyst and NBA great Shaquille O'Neal and CNN anchorperson Anderson Cooper (pictured at top) -- to deliver a slam-dunk that MediaVillage.com Editor Ed Martin says was the best segment of any Upfront event this season.  "Why the hell are you here?" O'Brien yelled at Cooper, seconds into his first question, given all the news developments of recent days. When O'Neal was not making brief asides, he had a fun time putting his left hand on O'Brien's right knee.  You had to be there. It was priceless.  So were the dazzling video segments outlining the programming on Cartoon Network and Adult Swim.  Grade: 5 Jacks

News:  TBS will have at least 15 original series on its lineup during 2018, mixing live-action and animated comedy series with unscripted material. New series include Miracle Workers (heaven as a workplace co-starring Daniel Radcliffe and Owen Wilson), Close Enough (next toon from Regular Show creator J.G. Quintel) and a comedy with viral video sensation The Dress Up Gang.  Separately, Snoop Dogg will handle a new version of the classic game show The Joker's Wild (taking place in Las Vegas with a different format from the original ... will contestants play a bonus round to face the devil?) and Turner digital unit Super Deluxe will develop a 90-minute late-night block.  At TNT The Alienist, the much-discussed miniseries announced last May, will finally debut next January.  One big development was not noted at all on stage: Top filmmaker Ridley Scott putting together an original night of science fiction each week in a variety of formats. (Note: Two years ago, TNT announced plans to launch a two-hour weekly block based on the Tales from the Crypt franchise, including a new Tales anthology half-hour.  An unresolved rights-associated issue continues to delay that project.)  Upcoming new series from Adult Swim include The Jellies and Mostly 4 Millennials.  Look for five new series on CNN in 2018, including Detroit 1963 and American Heiress: The Patty Hearst Story.  Grade: 4.5 Jacks

Hosts:  Speciale and Reilly were smooth, smart and enthusiastic.  Grade: 3.5 Jacks

Star Time:  The comedy waves kept coming, whether from Full Frontal host Samantha Bee, who let both the jokes and the expletives fly ("Our former FBI director has destroyed two presidencies in a year," is one of the few remarks in her routine we can print here.) or James Corden pulling off two "Drop The Mic" raps for his new TBS comedy competition.  Animated humor came from a Cartoon Network pitch to sponsors (using that channel's cast of notables) and a Rick and Morty routine, courtesy of Adult Swim. Grade: 4.5 Jacks

Cuisine:  The normal not-much-to-write-home about MSG breakfast fare.  Best eats: small vanilla and chocolate glazed donuts.  Worst eat: no tea!  What is this with the no tea policy at MSG?  Grade: 2 Jacks(Note: Cuisine ratings do not factor into the overall Jacks score.)

Data Insight:  Turner's family of linear networks combined have more than 750 million followers via a variety of social media (Facebook/Twitter/Instagram) and YouTube.  Grade: 2.5 Jacks

Innovative Opportunity:  Native Plus, a project in which brands tell more of their own stories within the TV commercial time they buy.  In the last year, brands have replaced nine hours of traditional commercial time with about 200 Native Plus messages using the storytelling approach.  Grade: 3.5 Jacks

Overall Grade: 5 Jacks Excellent presentation format, variety and delivery that didn't flag over 90 minutes, matched by an outstanding pre-presentation environment that captured the imagination of attendees.

Next up: National CineMedia

The Jacks rating system:  5 Jacks – Excellent, 4 Jacks -- Very Good, 3 Jacks – Good, 2 Jacks – Fair, 1 Jack –Poor, 0 Jacks -- Don't go there!

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The opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author and/or subject(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillage.com/MyersBizNet, Inc. management or associated writers.