NBC Universal Will Still Present to AdvertisersNBC Universal will bypass the traditional upfront presentation in mid-May and instead, present its programming plans to advertisers by reserving several hours May 12 to spotlight all of NBC Universal and not just the broadcast network. The NBC Universal decision comes about a month after NBC Uni CEO Jeff Zucker said he was leaning toward canceling the traditional upfront presentation that has been held at Radio City Music Hall in New York. It comes a few days after all of its rivals -- CBS, Fox and ABC -- confirmed they would hold an upfront presentation in mid-May. Instead, NBC said it will have a "client-centric approach" that begins with a yearlong programming announcement in early April. Following that, NBC Entertainment co-chairmen Ben Silverman and Marc Graboff will have individual meetings with advertisers and agencies and then meetings with the sales forces. The "spotlight event" May 12 will be held in an as-yet-undisclosed location in Mahattan. But it will focus on all of NBC Uni's platforms, from NBC to NBC News to Telemundo and even its environmental initiatives. There will also be a party. Telemundo will also not have an upfront and instead have meetings with advertisers in March. The cable channels will still hold their upfront presentations. Only one, USA Network, has announced its plans. USA will hold an upfront presentation March 26. |