The recession is even hitting the Oscars!
After historically low ratings for last year’s telecast, the sponsors are not backing the awards show the way they have in years previous. In fact, the Oscars and ABC are only expected to bring in $68 million dollars from advertisements this year, which is a dramatic drop from last year’s $81.8 million!
ABC cut their advertising costs by 18%, but as Jon Swallen at TNS Media Intelligence explains, “The fact is that advertisers are really taking a long look at how they├óΓé¼Γäóre investing their marketing dollars, and discount or no, this is still a lot of money. Even a reduced price tag is still a barrier to entry.├óΓé¼┬¥
Cosmetic giants L’Oréal Paris have decided not to advertise in the 2009 awards, which is a $22 million loss for ABC.
The reason for their absence?
Not advertising costs! It’s the wrong target audience!!
The 18-49 year old age bracket’s viewership went dramatically down in last year’s awards, 24% less than the 2007 awards.
“A lot of cosmetics companies reach out to younger women, and those viewers are leaving in droves,├óΓé¼┬¥ explains Shari Anne Brill of ad agency, Carat.
The Oscar’s median age is 49.5 years old!! Yikes!
The legendary awards better figure out a way to appeal to a younger audience ASAP before they go under!!
[Image via WENN.]