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sales@spotsndots.com Copyright 2018.The Daily News of TV Sales Tuesday, September 24, 2019

REPORT SEES REVENUE RISING THROUGH 2021 With increased consumer demand for big-screen televisions, wireless headphones, speakers and over-the-top video, consumer electronics is projected to grow 3 percent annually through 2021, according to new data from The NPD Group. “Steady single-digit growth is notable in a mature market where consumers are not replacing or repurchasing items at the same rate they did in prior years,” Stephen Baker, VP, industry advisor for The NPD Group, said in a statement. “While some categories offer new, greenfield growth opportunities, the majority of revenue growth will occur from trade-ups and average sales price (ASP) increases, as opposed to rising unit volume sales.” The movement to large-screen TVs is raising category revenue, despite expected flat unit sales overall. By 2021, more than 25 percent of TV unit sales will be for a screen size larger than 65 inches, and those will account for 60 percent of the category’s sales dollars. In audio, true wireless headphones have become the format of choice for consumers and are expected to see tremendous growth over the forecast period. NPD said true wireless headphones will hold three-quarters of the headphone market dollar share by 2021. While smart-home technology will begin to slow compared to recent years, NPD expects it will remain an area of strength as decreases in ASPs will make products more accessible and drive acceptance among consumers. Home automation revenue is expected to grow 40 percent from 2018 to 2021. During this timeframe, NPD says smart display dollar sales are expected to triple as they become more available and serve both as a smart home interface device and a point of modern convenience.

NFL SEEING MORE VIEWERS, AD DOLLARS Two weeks in, the National Football League season has shown a 3 percent gain in national TV viewers versus a year ago, as well as a 4 percent hike in national/regional TV advertising revenues, Television News Daily reports. One major reason is a strong Week 1, with three games posting more than 20 million Nielsen-measured viewers: New York Giants/Dallas Cowboys (23.9 million viewers); New England Patriots/Pittsburgh Steelers (22.2 million); and Green Bay Packers/Chicago Bears (22 million). The first week’s seven national/regional games average was 17.2 million viewers. That’s up 6 percent from 16.3 million viewers in the first week a year ago. The 2017 first week pulled in 16.4 million viewers. The second week averaged 15.13 million viewers, flat versus the same week a year ago. The first two weeks of the NFL season are estimated to have pulled in $475.9 million in national/regional advertising revenue across all NFL national TV channels — CBS, NBC, ESPN, NFL Network, and Fox — according to iSpot.tv.

NPD: 3% ANNUAL GROWTH IN CONSUMER ELECTRONICS ADVERTISER NEWS Toys R Us’ bankruptcy was not the death of toys, CNBC reports. Although toy sales will likely decline this year, sales are expected to pick up again in 2020, according to a report from NPD Group. Toys R Us’ bankruptcy caused a 7 percent surge in sales for the toy industry during the first half of 2018. Whether it was childhood nostalgia or sweet deals at liquidation sales, parents stocked up. But overall toy sales

ended the year down 2 percent to $21.6 billion as manufacturers experienced their first Christmas without the toy retailer, according to NPD Group... Best Buy will expand its lease-to-own program to nine more states in the next several months, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. The program, which was designed with partner Progressive Leasing to help customers without credit cards pay off their purchases over time, is prohibited by law

in Best Buy’s home state of Minnesota... Irish fast-fashion chain Primark is confident in its ability to make it big in the U.S. market, Reuters reports. Primark is looking for new suppliers in Central America to speed supplies of clothing and footwear to its stores in the states. The chain currently sources all its products from suppliers in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Vietnam and Turkey... The strike against General Motors by 49,000 United Auto Workers has entered its second week with progress reported in negotiations but no clear end in sight, The Associated Press reports. The sides are reportedly haggling over wages and profit sharing, new product for factories that GM wants to close, a faster route to full wages for new hires, and use of temporary workers. Workers walked off their jobs early on Sept. 16, paralyzing production at about 30 manufacturing sites in nine states... Apple will manufacture the next generation of its Mac Pro desktop computer in Austin, Texas, the company says. The Mac Pro is the only major Apple computer to be assembled in the U.S. Most of Apple’s products, including the iPhone, are assembled in China and are facing tariff threats... Albertsons Companies has revamped its lineup of frozen Own Brands entrees with 55 new items, from organic plant-based meals for the “flexitarian” to premium high-protein power bowls and more, Supermarket News reports. As part of the new lineup, in partnership with the Plant Based Foods Association, Albertsons’ Own Brands team introduced new plant-based frozen bowls and plant-based meatless proteins under its O Organics banner, all of which are certified USDA-certified organic and contain the PBFA “Certified Plant Based” seal... Nissan will pay $15 million and former chairman Carlos Ghosn will pay $1 million to settle allegations by U.S. regulators that they hid more than $140 million of Ghosn’s retirement benefits from investors, The Associated Press reports. The SEC yesterday announced the settlement of civil fraud charges with the major Japanese automaker and its former chairman, who also will be barred for 10 years from serving as an officer or director of a public company.

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

AVAILS WIS/Gray TV — The No. 1 Television Station and the No. 1 Local Digital Platform in Columbia, S.C., has an opening for an experienced Multi-Platform Consultant. We’re searching for candidates with 3-5 years of sales experience. You must have a proven track record of negotiating and developing business in broadcast sales and digital sales. Qualified applicants, please APPLY ONLINE and attach a cover letter and resume. Candidate must successfully complete pre-employment drug screen and MVR check. No phone calls or emails will be returned. EOE-M/F/D/V.

Cox Media Group Seattle is searching for an Account Executive. The AE will be responsible for generating media revenues through both broadcast and digital sales. This position requires a positive, team-oriented, self-starting, creative sales professional adept at growing existing accounts while developing direct new business. Proven track record of sales success in a local media setting, and a BA/BS degree with a minimum of two years of media sales,

account management or buying experience preferred. CLICK HERE for more info or to apply. EOE. KMBC-TV/Hearst Television’s ABC affiliate in Kansas City, has an opening for an experienced Account Executive. We are looking for an AE who is highly motivated, can grow revenue on existing accounts and secure new advertisers to the station. Ideal candidate will have strong business development experience as well as the ability to effectively negotiate. If you have a proven track record of producing revenue on multiple platforms, CLICK HERE to apply. EOE. WTAT-TV FOX24 in Charleston, S.C., seeks an energetic and experienced Creative Services Director. The director is responsible for on-air promotion and packaging of the channel’s marketing content and material. This position is both creative and strategic and works closely with station management to develop brand strategy and launch content and create brand identity and packaging. At least five years of creative professional in broadcasting and/or cable on air production required. Please email your resume to jobs@foxcharleston.com, and include your salary requirements and a link to your latest work. EOE.

See your ad here tomorrow! CLICK HERE for details.

RETURNS BECOMING HOLIDAY TRADITION A new survey indicates retailers must prepare for a deluge of post-Dec. 25 holiday activity, Chain Store Age reports. According to a survey of almost 16,000 global consumers from Oracle Retail and Savanta, 77 percent of respondents plan to return a portion of their gifts this holiday season. More than 20 percent expect to return more than half their presents. While 32 percent plan to return gifts via mail, 65 percent intend to return them to the store. Looking at holiday shopping habits, the survey indicates 75 percent will shop in-store and bring purchases home, compared to 55 percent who will shop online and ship purchases to their home.

NETWORK NEWS The early metrics were not good for the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards, and the final numbers are another bludgeoning for TV’s biggest night and Fox, this year’s broadcaster. Watched by 6.9 million viewers from 8 PM to just after 11 PM (ET), the hostless ceremony pulled in the smallest audience for any Emmys ever. That’s a 32 percent fall in sets of overall eyeballs from the Monday airing of the show on NBC last year, and a 39 percent drop from the show’s previous Sunday airing on CBS in 2017. In addition, the decline this year from the last time Fox had the Emmys in 2015 is a hard-to-swallow 42 percent. Pulling in a 1.6 rating among the 18-49s, that metric also represented an Emmy low. Sunday night’s show toppled 36 percent from 2017 and 56 percent from the Andy Samberg-hosted night in 2015... ABC has given a put pilot commitment to Mourning Songs, a musical family comedy, Deadline reports. Based on the life and Instagram feed of songwriter Ryan Langer, the single-camera comedy centers on a 35-year-old composer who, after the tragic death of his father, is forced to move back home to live with his mom, help his family heal and grow up, possibly for the very first time... Fox’s upcoming 9-1-1: Lone Star has rounded out its cast of series regulars, adding Natacha Karam (The Brave), Brian Michael Smith (Queen Sugar), newcomer Rafael Silva (Showtime’s Fluidity) and Julian Works (American Crime). Set in Austin, the new series will follow Owen (Rob Lowe), a sophisticated New York firefighter who, along with his son, relocates to the Texas capital and must try to balance saving those who are at their most vulnerable with solving the problems in his own life... Jared Padalecki is set to headline Walker, Texas Ranger, a reimagining of CBS’ long-running 1990s action/crime series, Deadline says. The project is being shopped by CBS TV Studios. CW, the home of Padalecki’s long-running series Supernatural, has reportedly emerged as a leading contender for the new show, with CBS, which aired the Chuck Norris-starring original, also a possibility.

LOWER-INCOME AMERICANS ARE JOB HOPPING The share of lower-income Americans leaving their jobs for new ones leapt earlier this year, pointing to rising confidence in the U.S. labor market among workers who were left behind earlier in the expansion, The Wall Street Journal reports. A New York Fed survey released yesterday showed the share of lower-income heads of household, defined as earning a household income of $60,000 a year or less, who moved to new jobs in April, May, June or July was 12 percent, up from 8 percent in the same period a year earlier and the highest rate for records dating back to 2014. Meanwhile, job changes among higher-income workers have been declining since early 2018. The lower-income workers had more opportunities: About 4 percent of lower-income Americans received three job offers in the four months ended in July, up from 1.4 percent over the same period in 2018, according to the data in the New York Fed Survey of Consumer Expectations.

9/24/2019

David Letterman

The worst-tempered people I have ever met were those who knew that they were wrong.

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

COURT UPENDS FCC ON MEDIA OWNERSHIP The FCC’s efforts to relax a series of restrictions on ownership of TV stations has been sidelined by a federal appeals court, Deadline reports. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday ruled 2-1 that the FCC, in making the changes over the past three years, did not adequately consider the effect that the revised rules would have on ownership of TV outlets by women and minorities. “Although it did ostensibly comply with our prior requirement to consider this issue on remand, its analysis is so insubstantial that we cannot say it provides a

reliable foundation for the Commission’s conclusions,” the judges wrote in their decision. In a 3-2 party-line vote in 2017, the FCC eliminated a ban on the ownership of a TV station and newspaper in the same market. It also eased rules that required two merging stations to show that, after their combination, at least eight independently owned outlets remained in that market. FCC chairman Ajit Pai indicated that

the agency will seek further review. He noted that the Third Circuit has rejected previous attempts to revise media ownership rules.

THIS AND THAT OTT viewing time is starting to approach that of live TV, according to TiVo’s Video Trends Report for Q2 2019. More than half (52.4%) of respondents to the North American survey reported regularly watching one hour or more of OTT-delivered content, compared to 65.8 percent for live TV... A new HarrisX survey offers positive news for upcoming streaming services. It found that 28 percent of those currently using a service say they’re likely to sign up for a new one. On average, 21 percent cited the $6.99 Disney+ bundle that will also include Hulu and ESPN+. In addition, 11 percent and 10 percent, on average, identified WarnerMedia’s HBO Max and NBCUniversal’s Peacock.

9/24/2019

Tina Turner

I believe that if you’ll just stand up and go,

life will open up for you.

SUNDAY NIELSEN RATINGS - LIVE + SAME DAY

HOLIDAY SPENDING EXPECTED TO SEE 5% RISE It may only be September, but the December holiday shopping rush is just around the corner, CNBC reports. Around 50 percent of consumers have already started looking for items on their friends’ and family’s wish lists, according to a new online survey from The Harris Poll and OpenX, an ad exchange network, that polled 2,000 shoppers in August. The holidays are a critical time for many brands: Sales during this time of year can make up 30 percent of a retailer’s annual revenue. Heading into the gift-giving season, shoppers are expected to spend 5 percent more this year than they did last year, according to the survey. But while consumers plan to spend more this year, they also plan to spend their money differently than last year. OpenX expects 53 percent of all holiday shopping to be done digitally. In fact, around 20 percent of purchases are expected to happen on mobile devices, driven predominantly by millennials.

REPORT: ONLINE GROCERY POISED FOR GROWTH Grocery-anchored shopping centers have long been favored by real estate investors, Chain Store Age says. Neighborhood centers without supermarkets average cap rates of around 8 percent, while ones with a grocery hover near 5 percent. The lower the cap rate, the more expensive the property, so grocery-anchored centers remain in high demand. But a new study from Met Life Investment Management called A New Dawn in Retail predicts online food sellers like Instacart, Amazon and Peapod will cut more significantly into brick-and-mortar sales in the next few years. Now at 2.5 percent of market share, the e-coms could advance to a position of 7 percent or more by 2023. Armed with data that allows them to customize their offerings to specific neighborhoods, grocers are already trimming their inventories and downsizing store footprints, the report noted. The average size of a Publix or a Whole Foods is 45,000 square feet, close to the minimum size for a grocery categorized as a supermarket. The average size of a Sam’s Club Now, a mobile-first shopping experience, is 32,000 square feet. Met Life allowed that brick-and-mortar supermarkets fulfill a goodly portion of online orders, but expected that to change as high operating costs involved with the system pushes grocery e-coms into cold-storage warehouses.

DONE DEAL The E.W. Scripps Company says it has appointed Kerry Oslund, a broadcast veteran with more than 37 years of experience, to the role of VP of strategy and business. Oslund will lead the company’s next-generation television efforts, including its ATSC 3.0 strategy, and will help identify, develop and evaluate investment and partnership opportunities that complement the Scripps portfolio. Oslund was most recently VP of strategy and business development for Tribune Broadcasting. Oslund earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and statistics from Arizona State University.