Television

The growth of TV Streaming (from the TV Players) of broadcasters’ content, remains higher than the averages seen pre-Covid too, up 47-140 per cent depending on the player, reflecting the ongoing shift in the market to ‘on-demand’ viewing (often called VOD Video on demand). Of course, Netflix too now carrying Advertising in the UK & Ireland since November 2022.

Which may mean that ‘live’ TV is declining (except for live Sports) as we all get more used to ‘on demand’ (viewing at a time of our choosing, like ‘Netflix’ which nearly has 1m Irish homes subscribing). You’ll see Advertising on Players in the Digital section. It’s important to understand that Netflix is just another viewing service and not a replacement for TV viewing. We all watch both.

We all watch live TV in huge numbers and of course for live Sport (which is not on Netflix!) and for example, dominates the RTE 2 viewership and more recently, Virgin.

Netflix now offers an Ad supported option (you’ll see Ads) for about half the price of current subscription. So if you don’t want Ads, you’ll pay a subscription premium. And of course, you can now advertise on Netflix (ask us).

Of course too, there’s other platforms such as Disney+ etc.

Television Advertising can seem complicated when it’s not. All you want to do is to run a TV Commercial on RTE, Sky, Virgin or Medialink (Channel 4 Ireland) based on a budget and we’re here to help you do that. So, we’ve tried to de-mystify it by showing our discounted spot rates and packages but please, ask us for help. Unfortunately some stations don’t publish rates cards (Virgin, Sky, but we hear quietly that they are coming…) so you do have to enquire with us.

Adsmart/Skysmart (“addressable TV”)

These are relatively ‘new’ ways of reaching a more ‘local’ TV audience by showing your commercial to only the particular audiences you select (from the station pre-determined selection options called ‘mosaics’) rather than to everyone.

These are grouped in homes called ‘deciles’ or ‘mosaics’ as you’ll see in the ‘Buy Media’ section when you select Adsmart or Skysmart. Only on Virgin and Sky and with low cost (5k) entry packages. Please ask us.

2023 TV ADVANCE BOOKING DEADLINES

8 Weeks ideally, AB Deadline 6 Weeks

January – 25th November 2022

February – 3rd January 2023

March – 18th January 2023

April – 17th February 2023

May – 20th March 2023

June – 20th April 2023

July – 22nd May 2023

August – 20th June 2023

September – 20th July 2023

October 4th August 2023 21st August 2023

November 6th September 2023 21st September 2023

December 6th October 2023 20th October 2023

NOTES:

– Bookings are to be received by 5.30pm on stated deadline day. Any bookings received after this time will not be entitled to the Advanced Booking Discount.

– 5% discount will apply at 8 week AB dates for the following categories: Oct-Dec: Supermarkets, Cars, Cable, Satellite and Telecommunications.

– 6 week AB’s will not be available for Supermarkets, Cars, Cable, Satellite & Telecommunications from Oct-Dec .

– Short term pricing may apply in tightly traded months to certain audiences/categories – This may mean the withdrawal of certain audiences after the AB deadline.

Consider Cinema as an ‘add on’ to TV (Admatic discount is -25% and more). If you’re booking TV consider Advertising in Cinemas in Ireland – it has advantages. Irish people have the highest cinema attendance in Europe and in a closed, dark environment, your Advertising has extra impact.

Your other TV Questions….

First time Advertiser on TV? If you are, talk to us to get those extra discounts – but we do have to apply and there’s a process which involves time (no cost). But you should do it.

TV Copy Clearance/Dispatch? You should check out our ‘Copy Clearance Dispatch’ section on the homepage if you’re unfamiliar with TV…If you’re using a new commercial (or newly edited) TV Commercial that requires Copy Clearance. If you are repeating a TV Commercial that has already been broadcast, you should have no problem. Just book and indicate it’s a repeat. You/we will have to supply the TV commercial/s in good time, normally allow 4+ working days before broadcast.

Sky and Channel 4 is cleared by Clearcast UK (despite being for an Irish audience….anyway….and it can be complicated and time consuming). We are happy to do all of that for you and it comes at a cost. Also we do all dispatch to stations via Caria. RTE/Virgin clearance is easier, quicker and more straightforward, thankfully.

TV Early Booking (AB Deadlines)? Advance Booking (AB Deadlines they call them) on TV is important especially on RTE as broadcasters incentivise you to book early by way of a small extra discount and better spots. Not only does it deliver best pricing but helps to ensure specific programme availability. See the AB deadlines and if you can take advantage of them, do (even the next time!) but they require 8-week forward planning. Tricky enough because that’s onerous for most advertisers. Plan/Book early is ALWAYS the answer.

TV Transmission times? We supply these to you in advance (spot times) after booking, as quickly as we can (as soon as the station supplies us in other words). But they generally come quickly.

TV Reports? We produce a ‘post campaign analysis’ on all TV activity to show you how well your advertising did in terms of coverage, reach and frequency. Who saw your Ad and how many times. Yes, for free.

TV Lengths? When booking TV airtime, the usual TV commercial length is 30 seconds on which rates are calculated. All costs are based on 30 second lengths which is probably 95%+ of all commercials. If you wish to use other lengths, you can, but you need to convert the 30 second cost as a percentage as shown below for Radio and TV. You can’t book (generally) 5, 10, 25, 35, 50 second lengths on TV.

Price Conversion from 30” Rates for all media

Seconds 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 50 60

Factor 50% 50% 70% 80% 100% 100% +133% +133% +167% +200%

Prices changes? TV airtime costs change by the month. They increase at peak viewing time (Christmas for example) and reduce off-peak (as for January, showing big discounts). They also vary by time of day as the viewership changes. So, we deliver on a % discount on whatever prices is published by the stations. RTE -10%, Virgin Media -30%, Sky – 60%, C4 – 60%, TG4 -70%. Keep an eye out.

Positions in Breaks ‘PIB’? All costs are for centre breaks so your commercial appears during the mid-Ad break in a programme. You can ‘fix’ your spot to be first, last in a break or in the first break (as a programme starts) but it incurs a further charge of circa +25%.

Need a TV Commercial? We have produced a lot! Hundreds. So see our ‘Creating your Advertising’ tab on the homepage.