Paramount Global, parent of CBS, said it will abandon the network’s traditional upfront extravaganza at Carnegie Hall next year.
Instead, the company will be hosting a series of "high-impact, intimate gatherings in April for each of our major agency partners and their clients," said John Halley, the new head of ad sales at Paramount.
Halley succeeded Jo Ann Ross, who presided over dozens of upfronts at Carnegie Hall. The company returned to Carnegie Hall this year after COVID-19 wiped out in-person upfront events in 2020 and 2021.
Viacom, which merged with CBS to create Paramount, stopped having big upfront events several years earlier, opting for smaller, agency-focused events.
Last week, NBCUniversal announced it would have this year's upfront at Radio City Music Hall, where the company has been staging its presentation for years.
With the ad market expected to be weak going into 2023, viewing shifting away from traditional broadcast and cable networks toward streaming and the industry shifting to more tech and data-driven marketing, it’s not entirely surprising that the traditional upfront approach is under pressure. Paramount CEO Bob Bakish recently told an investor conference he expected fourth-quarter ad revenues to be weaker than expected.
The star-studded upfront extravaganzas cost millions -- an expense that has become questionable at a time when media companies are tightening belts and laying off staff.
But the upfront has remained the place where national television players have sold the majority of their inventory for years.
In a memo to staff, Halley explained his rationale for moving in a new direction.
"This continues to be a transformative period for our industry, and at Paramount, we know that new realities call for new approaches," Halley said. "The same principle goes for our 2023 Upfront presentation. As media investment becomes more complex, the event needs to evolve to meet this moment.
"Our targeted approach is intended to encourage conversation with our most trusted partners — to hear directly from the agencies and advertisers we serve and who form the bedrock of our business," he said. "We also have a fantastic story to tell about the power of our popular portfolio and enhanced offerings, and the earlier timing will increase share of voice, in a more fitting setting for deeper engagement." ■
