Dive Brief:
- Old Navy is the official retail partner for the Fox broadcast on Sunday of “A Christmas Story Live!" and the program it has developed includes more than four minutes of ad time during the broadcast consisting of six- and 30-second ad spots, product and brand integrations throughout and Facebook Live backstage access, as reported by Adweek.
- Old Navy will be integrated into the production including clothing worn by some of the performers and a 1940s version of an Old Navy storefront in the village square even though the retailer didn’t open until 1994.
- “This is a true cross-platform live event partnership,” Suzanne Sullivan, EVP, entertainment sales at Fox Networks Group, told Adweek.
Dive Insight:
Similar to live sports and awards shows like the Golden Globes and Oscars, live musicals provide traditional broadcasters with a destination viewing event — an increasing rarity in a TV landscape filled with streaming services and DVR-delayed viewing habits. The value of these efforts for brands is evident in the ad revenue these broadcasts bring in. For example, while the audience for NBC’s live musicals has dwindled since its first offering in 2013, last year’s “Hairspray Live!” more than doubled the ad revenue of the 2013 broadcast.
For brands with broad appeal like Old Navy, live broadcast events offer the potential of reaching a wide audience as they gather together to enjoy viewing together, something that doesn't happen as often as used to now that people can stream whatever content they want whenever they want.
By partnering with Fox, which has been one of the most aggressive broadcasters in terms of experimenting with new ad formats, Old Navy also has an opportunity to text innovative tactics like six-second spots, which Fox brought to linear TV from digital advertising. During the Thanksgiving Day NFL game, Fox displayed the short ads in a double-box format that included ongoing gameplay.
Fox will also include a two-and-a-half live ad during the broadcast of its live musical for "The Greatest Showman" film from 20th Century Fox. The commercial will include some of the film's stars like Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron and Zendaya performing one of its songs.
The Facebook Live integration offers viewers a second screen experience and backstage access to the production. Broadcast TV is likely to continue to become more innovative in how it presents ads as well as be more open to taking a cue from what works on digital platforms where younger audiences are spending much of their viewing time.
Live holiday musicals are becoming a standard for broadcast TV, a trend NBC kicked off in 2013 with "The Sound of Music Live!" and then followed up with live productions of Peter Pan, The Wiz and Hairspray. This year, the network had to postpone its broadcast of "Bye Bye Birdie Live!" due to scheduling issues, leaving Fox's live version of the popular 1983 Christmas movie the sole offering.
