VOTE NOW - Rate the Upfront Presentations

It truly was an Upfront week like no other. The broadcast networks were faced with the challenge of putting together their annual programming presentations to advertisers and the press in the aftermath of the Writers Guild of America strike, which wreaked havoc on network and studio development schedules. What to do when there was so little to show?

CBS and Fox seemed to be the least impacted. CBS actually announced five new shows and was able to screen clips from all of them in grand fashion at Carnegie Hall, but it cancelled its annual party for advertisers at Tavern on the Green. Fox seemed almost strike-proof, putting on a star-filled presentation, throwing the party of the week and announcing the August debut of a new thriller from J.J. Abrams titled Fringe, which began generating huge buzz right out of the gate. The CW downsized its presentation from a theater at Madison Square Garden to a tent at Lincoln Center, and bizarrely kept its talent behind ropes at an otherwise enjoyable affair, but it did get buzz going for one of its three new fall series, 90210, and it reinforced its identity as a brand for young women. ABCwas extremely low-key, announcing two new shows and a new approach to determining the impact and effectiveness of advertising on its platforms, but with the exception of a brief routine from Jimmy Kimmel the network did little to actively generate interest in its fall schedule. Like CBS, ABC cancelled its annual post-presentation bash. NBC Universal threw a company-wide, over-the-top event that seemed to put off as many people as it pleased and was not at all helpful in educating advertisers about its new fall series beyond the details it released during its Infrontmeetings last month. Still, there were more than 150 stars from NBC and its cable networks on hand to promote their shows.

Univision delivered yet another entertaining, engaging and educational extravaganza at Lincoln Center. Turner Networks produced an enjoyably old-fashioned presentation featuring all of its top talent that clearly delivered its message and generated interest in its product. MTV’s event (which took place adjacent to Upfront week) focused on content within commercial pods rather than the programming around them, and delighted the crowd with appearances by Justin Timberlake, Sarah Silverman, Taylor Swift and other exciting stars. ESPN made what may be the biggest programming announcement of the week: In addition to its live evening and weekend telecasts, SportsCenter will run live from 6 a.m. until 3 p.m. Monday-Friday beginning August 11.

Two other large Upfront presentations are also worth including here, even though they took place well before Upfront week. Scripps Networksand Discovery Networks. They both covered a lot of ground on behalf of their many outlets. The Scripps presentation included one executive lecture too many and Discovery’s ran a bit long, but they were both informative.

JackMyers.com will be providing its annual in-depth analysis of all Upfront week events next week and will rate them accordingly. In  the meantime, we would like to know what you thought about the events you attended. How would you rate the effectiveness of these Upfront presentations?

Please click here and take our quick two minute Upfront survey.

For photos of the Upfront week events, check out the JackMyers.com Photo Gallery.