Television network ad sales executives said they are taking a day-to-day approach as some advertisers pull their campaigns, others quickly change the commercials they're airing and other push commercials they'd planned to air in March and April back to later in the year.
A E president Paul Buccieri at last years upfront with Robin Roberts and President George W. Bush.
At this point, it's hard to calculate how much ad revenues were lost in the first quarter due to the coronavirus outbreak, executives said. As the second-quarter starts, they expect more of the same with a key milepost coming about May 1, when advertisers who bought third-quarter commercials in the upfront can exercise options to cancel those orders.
Even more uncertain is the 2020-21 upfront. Live presentations have been canceled and networks are looking for new ways to make their upfront pitches to media buyers and clients. But it is unclear when marketers will be able to decide how much they want to spend on advertising with consumers stuck at home and many businesses closed to stop the spread of the virus.
Were trying to have the philosophy of taking things two weeks at a time not to get too far ahead of ourselves and make decisions on where things are going to be a month or two from now, said Peter Olsen, executive VP for ad sales at A E Networks. Everyones been really reasonable. The conversations have been very understanding on both sides.
At Crown Media, which runs the Hallmark Channel, advertisers in the hardest-hit categories including cruise lines, airlines and hotels move quick to cancel their ads as consumers were urged to stay home, said Ed Georger, executive VP for ad sales.
WORKING WITH ADVERTISERS
Other advertisers have taken different approaches. They want us to work with them in a variety of ways. Some advertisers just want to push bank their schedules a little bit. Others may want to have broader shifts into other quarters. Weve worked with people. Weve had people donate their time to charitable organizations. Weve been working with the Red Cross for example, and the Ad Council," Georger said.
Ed Georger
Most clients are taking a day to day approach, looking at their own businesses and how the crisis is affecting their relationship with consumers.
I think the more that we see advertisers adjusting their message and thinking about their business more long-term the less were going to see the desire to just outright cancel," Georger said.
In the meantime, networks are doing business in the scatter market, where some advertisers are buying ads. Georger added that there's a need for inventory for direct-response ads, although that market is soft because there is so much supply with traditional demand down and viewing up.
Hallmark is also looking to increase its own promotion with some of the ad inventory it has on its hands.
We think that theres value in some messaging that we would do as a network to give support and encouragement to our viewers, Georger said. Were working with Hallmark cards to create a branded campaign that will really support the viewers and let them know that you know, as as a network, were there for them and remind them of some of the positive things in their lives. A message the Hallmark brand is uniquely able to deliver.
Media buyers are also busy accessing their clients' needs and trying to figure out how to reach consumers as TV networks are forced by the crisis and the benching of live sports big changes in their programming lineups.
HOW LONG WILL IT LAST?
Across categories and industries, there are a variety of reactions and explorations from cancellations, to postponements to creative re-expressions. To make a meaningful forecast on scatter and options, in general, there are two components that need to be clear: how definitively and quickly brands will respond and second, how extended the crisis will last, said Matt Sweeney, U.S. chief investment officer at GroupM.
With that said, we are confident there are and will be viable investment alternatives, and these alternatives could open different doors and paths to engage with customers. We are in dialogue with clients and partners daily, and it's assuring to see the elevated collaboration, said Sweeney.
Media agency Magna recently forecast that national advertising revenue will drop 13% this year, hurt by the Coronavirus crisis, with most of the decline occurring in the first half.
The network ad sales departments have had to figure out how to function from home, with offices close to slow the spread of the virus.
I give kudos first of all to our IT department. They jumped into action and really got everyone in the company set up pretty quickly to be able to function from outside the office, Georger said. With clients changing schedules and what commercials they want to run, traffic departments are also carrying the load.
I tip my hat and give large praise to the traffic department and the IT department that equipped them and gave them the ability to be able to do their job, Georger said. Its the beginning of the quarter which is always a pressure time, but now you add to that the constant adjusting of schedules. Theyre doing an amazing job.
The traffic guys are the heroes right now. Theyre working like crazy right now, added Olsen.
Olsen said that by approaching the business in two-week increments, the company has been able to put some guardrails around the fallout.
There's definitely an element of business as usually going on, said Olsen. Some advertisers are buying in the scatter market. There's certain categories that are seeing minimal disruption and then clearly there are some that are dealing with very acute challenges.
THIRD-QUARTER OPTIONS
The next inflection point that will determine how much ad sales will be disrupted in the second half
Most recent headlines
11/12/2025
Dalet, a leading provider of cloud-native, end-to-end media workflow solutions, ...
06/12/2025
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. A new survey from Pixitmedia by Datacore revealed a major shift in the Media & Entertainment industry in media archiving, with 85% of resp...
06/12/2025
HACKENSACK, N.J. LiveU has announced that the national public broadcaster Czech Television has completed one of the largest LiveU live production deployments fo...
06/12/2025
NEW YORK The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) presented the Excellence in Production Technology Emmy Award to NASA+ and Dr. Tom Leight...
05/12/2025
2025 Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame: Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nati...
05/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: Veritone's Sean King on the Power of Mining Video, Audio DataThe company's Data Refinery offers users total control and governance over da...
05/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: Inside the Nashville Predators' Unified, Flexible, Sca...
05/12/2025
Netflix Reaches Agreement To Acquire Warner Bros. Following Planned WBD SplitThe deal does not include WBDs sports assets like TNT Sports (US, UK, LatAm), Euros...
05/12/2025
FOX Sports Returns to Indianapolis for Primetime Broadcast of Big Ten Championsh...
05/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Digital Engagement & Monetization Workshop Tackles the ...
05/12/2025
Atlanta United Lights Up New Emory Healthcare Studio With First Live Broadcast f...
05/12/2025
As Messi Takes the Pitch, MLS, Apple, NEP Roll Out Largest MLS Cup Production Ev...
05/12/2025
ESPN Enters College Football's Most Intense Month With Elevated Workflows fo...
05/12/2025
It's about that time! Awards season is in full swing, and the Film Independe...
05/12/2025
Every year, Spotify Wrapped offers a personalized look back at the audio that defined your year. It's a snapshot of your listening habits, designed to tell ...
05/12/2025
In 2025, Spotify's EQUAL, GLOW, and RADAR programs celebrated women, LGBTQIA , and emerging artists who turned moments into milestones. From breaking record...
05/12/2025
In our latest blog, we explain how Wi-Fi 7 rollouts can drive consumer loyalty with value-add services such as consumer cybersecurity. We also explore how this ...
05/12/2025
LOS ANGELES Netflix announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Nielsens Gracenote has launched Gracenote Content Connect, a new ad platform that provides agencies, brands, supply-side platforms (SSPs) and demand-si...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK In an most important update to the workings of deal-based programmatic advertising, IAB Tech Lab has released version 1.0 of its Deals API for public c...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Pass the turkey. Pass the stuffing. Pass the cranberry sauce. All are common requests of Americans celebrating Thanksgiving Day with family and f...
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. Netflix announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion....
05/12/2025
NEW YORK Iris, the new cloud-connected camera control platform, has officially launched with features that turn virtually any PTZ camera into a software-connect...
05/12/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has approved AT&T's $1.02 billion acquisition of spectrum from UScellular in a decision that was issued sho...
05/12/2025
The Best Coldplay Songs: 21 Tracks That Shoot for the Stars From Yellow to Viva La Vida, Fix You to Paradise, this playlist goes back to the start.
December ...
05/12/2025
Zafris Lecture Series Brings Nabil Ayers to Berklee The 32nd annual James G. Zafris Distinguished Lecture series was held on Thursday, November 13, with guest...
05/12/2025
Friday 5 December 2025
A new Game of Thrones Tale: Official trailer for Sky Exc...
05/12/2025
Back to All News
Don Lee, Lee Jin-uk, and Lalisa Manobal to Star in Netflix Act...
05/12/2025
Tis the season of giving once again and this year we've taken our Give Back Fridays' concept and turned it on its head.
In the autumn we were approach...
05/12/2025
Brayden Gogis doesn't remember a time when he wasn't completely fixated on games in all forms. In preschool, when they asked us to dress up as what we ...
05/12/2025
The Grinch steals the spotlight as the theme for The Late Late Toy Show 2025
Tune in tonight at 9:35pm on RT One and worldwide on RT Player
#LateLateToyShow...
05/12/2025
RT Announces New Presenters of Flagship News Programmes
New RT Six One News co-presenter Tommy Meskill
Sarah McInerney & Justin McCarthy join Morning Ir...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir Blackmagic Design HyperDeck Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & ...
04/12/2025
ToolsOnAir AJA Ki Pro Event Presets for just:in mac pro 2025 & just:in linux
More Details:Starting with version 5.5, both just:in mac pro and just:in linux sol...
04/12/2025
Wangu Kanuri from Kenya and Godwin Asediba from Ghana are two of this years finalists for Thomsons Young Journalist of the Year Award. The pair are runners-up i...
04/12/2025
SVG Sit-Down: ProximaVision's Claudio Lisman on Why Tethered Drones Could Be...
04/12/2025
SVG Campus Shot Callers: Imry Halevi, Senior Associate Director of Athletics, Co...
04/12/2025
Platinum White Paper: LiveU Lightweight Sports Production: A Step Change in Spor...
04/12/2025
London to Riyadh: DAZN brings the boxing glamour to new production levels for Be...
04/12/2025
Analysis: Paramount bets on the battering ram' with Champions League play By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Tuesday, December 2, 2025 - 10:12
Print ...
04/12/2025
Space City Home Network Launches SCHN DTC App for Astros and RocketsThe Rockets and Astros were previously the lone NBA and MLB teams without a DTC appBy Jason...
04/12/2025
SVG Summit 2025 Preview: Content Workflows Workshop Spotlights Evolution of Spor...
04/12/2025
New Sponsor Spotlight: Geotech's Patrick Wambold On the Unreal Engine Revolu...
04/12/2025
Curt Gowdy Jr. - Master Storyteller, Nationally and RegionallyBy Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S.
Thursday, December 4, 2025 - 1:52 pm
Print This Sto...
04/12/2025
(L-R) Rebecca Lichtenfeld, Mohammadreza Eyni, Sara Khaki, and Judith Helfand att...
04/12/2025
SBS launches Future Frames initiative to support emerging First Nations video ed...
04/12/2025
Coronal mass ejections caused by eruptions on the surface of the sun can have fa...
04/12/2025
Gracenote Content Connect enables media ecosystem to precisely align ad campaigns and programming based on rich content signals
NEW YORK - December 4, 2025 - N...
Television network ad sales executives said they are taking a day-to-day approach as some advertisers pull their campaigns, others quickly change the commercials they're airing and other push commercials they'd planned to air in March and April back to later in the year.
