Fox decided to try running shorter commercials during Fringe with the theory that more people would actually watch them rather than flipping through the channels. And it’s working. According to the recent stats 88% of people watching other Fox dramas don’t flip during the commercials, while 92% of people watching Fringe stay tuned. Interesting! Here is a snippet from the article in the Washington Post:
Back in May, when Fox execs unveiled their 2008-09 season plans to advertisers in New York, they promised to slash ad time on J.J. Abrams‘s “Fringe” and Joss Whedon‘s midseason “Dollhouse.”
We’re going to have less commercials, less promotional time and less reason for viewers to use the remote,” Fox entertainment division Chairman Peter Liguori said. “We’re going to have more character, more content, more value.”
The network even gave it a name: Remote-Free TV.
According to Magna, “Fringe” so far has contained less than half the commercial load of the typical Fox drama. The average Fox drama is 70 percent drama, 27 percent ads. When you’re watching “Fringe” you’re getting 84 percent drama, 13 percent ads.
I guess I have another reason to love Fringe – Hooray for “Remote Free TV”!
I love Fringe but I actually was not a fan of the short commercial thing – we don’t switch from channel to channel anyway, but we did use those commercials for things like snack refills, getting chores done, etc. Doesn’t leave much time for a bathroom break! haha