slavin:
If you’ve never been in the advertising or TV businesses, this is a useful intro. This is the part where ~60 billion dollars from brands moves through the hands of the agencies, who give it to the networks. $60 billion a year.
This is not done with spreadsheets and algorithms. It’s done with parties, alcohol, steak, and big musical numbers —all at a scale you’d find shocking. I like all those things (not musical numbers). But I don’t confuse them with the conditions necessary to understand a product, evaluate a risk, or do business.
We live in a moment where inefficiencies are smoothing out quickly. The upfronts were born in a moment where it was legitimately difficult to exchange information without convening a crowd. But those days are over, for better and worse. It would be like bringing a bunch of insanely overpaid actors to the NYSE to pretend they still trade stocks there. Oh, wait.
This is the part of the story where everyone just keeps doing what they’ve been doing. Not because it makes any sense, but because they don’t know what else to do.
The parts of the story that come after that part are usually sort of sad.
Upwards of 40% of a network’s annual sales are determined during this one week.