In a move that could greatly impact the acceptance of digital television (DTV) in the advertising community, ABC Television Network and Panasonic Broadcast & Television Systems Company announced that they would team to broadcast Super Bowl XXIV and the ’99/2000 season of Monday Night Football in high definition.
The HDTV telecasts will be broadcast in 720P, ABC’s selected HD format. ABC’s traditional analog broadcast of the games will continue as well. ABC began broadcasting HDTV on Nov. 1, 1998, with The Wonderful World of Disney presentation of the live action movie, 101 Dalmatians. Since then, the network has broadcast 31 theatrical features in HDTV, including Mission Impossible, Forrest Gump, Courage Under Fire, and A Time to Kill. However at this stage, a limited amount of content and set penetration coupled with no quantifiable audience has contributed to a generally complacent ad industry.
Many industry pundits believe that the broadcast of high profile sporting events such as the Super Bowl in high definition would bolster consumer interest in the format and spur the advertising industry to produce HDTV commercials. Thus DTV proponents greeted the ABC/Panasonic announcement with enthusiasm.
"This is a really big deal. … That’s the proverbial killer app," enthused Dean Winkler, president of New York-based Post Perfect and COO of New York Media Group. "Between that and the [CBS/Mitsubishi sponsorship agreement, see separate story, p. 7], that’s it. We’re there." Winkler said with confidence that he expects some HD commercials will be produced for the next TV season.
"The advertising community has been less than enthusiastic because [HDTV broadcasting] seemed so distant. I think this is going to accelerate high-end advertising’s [interest] in HD postproduction," agreed Craig Heyl, VP, postproduction at Atlanta-based Crawford Communications.
Added Tim Spitzer, director of high definition and digital services at New York-based The Tape House, "Monday Night Football and the Super Bowl broadcast in high definition will start making viewers who have the opportunity to see those programs aware of the benefits [of the format]. … For the Super Bowl, obviously if it is shown in high-definition in sports bars and specialty venues, it will be an exciting opportunity for advertisers to promote their products."
For the broadcasts, Panasonic agreed to build and outfit a 720P HDTV mobile production truck, which will travel to all 17 Monday night games, one wild card playoff game and Super Bowl XXXIV, January 30, 2000 in Atlanta. The mobile unit will be equipped with Panasonic 720P HDTV equipment.
"Live sporting events provide the best platform to demonstrate the viewing benefits of high definition television," said ABC Television Network president Patricia Fili-Krushel. "And Monday Night Football-as the only live, primetime sporting event-offers the greatest opportunity to showcase HDTV to the American public."
"By becoming involved in providing attractive HDTV programming, Panasonic is facilitating the entire DTV program process, from the program itself to the camera capturing it, all the way through to the DTV television set in the consumer’s home," said Panasonic president Warren Allgyer.
Panasonic will receive not only a promotional announcement during the pre-game shows for ABC’s analog and HDTV football telecasts, but also commercial time during the HDTV broadcasts. Allgyer said it was premature to discuss the company’s advertising plans although he commented that Panasonic "hopes to produce" high definition commercials for the broadcasts.
ABC president of broadcast operations and engineering Preston Davis said the network had not yet started to talk to advertisers about the new development. Meanwhile, there may be additional opportunities on the way. Davis said ABC was starting to think about HD broadcasts of other high profile events such as the Academy Awards and the Daytime Emmys; there were no formal plans at press time.
Currently, there are 18 ABC stations on air with digital broadcasting. The FCC’s DTV transition schedule mandates that affiliates of the four major networks must be on the air with a digital signal by Nov. 1. The deadline for all other commercial stations is May 1, 2002.
