January 15, 2008
NBC Universal’s spat with Apple’s iTunes over pricing issues has been well documented. But Showtime, a subsidiary of CBS Corporation, has found iTunes to be a good outlet for selling its shows. Last week Showtime shows accounted for six of the top ten television offerings on iTunes, measured by the number of purchases.
A key difference is that Showtime, unlike NBC, is a pay channel, and iTunes represents a good way for the network to disseminate its shows beyond its 15 million subscribers, said Rob Hayes, the company’s senior vice president for digital media.
“It’s a great sampling vehicle for us, helping people who don’t have Showtime to get exposed to our show,” Mr. Hayes said.
Mr. Hayes said that sales through iTunes provide a “nice piece of revenue” for Showtime but would not share specifics. Instead, he emphasized the sampling strategy.
The recently released first seasons of “The Tudors” and “Californication” were the No. 1 and 2 seasons on iTunes, according to Apple’s ranking. Apple does not release sales figures.
After David Duchovny received a Golden Globe award for best actor in a comedic or musical series, his show “Californication” moved into the No. 1 position.
The first two seasons of Showtime’s “Weeds” are also among the top ten best-selling seasons on iTunes. The Fox series “Family Guy” and the Comedy Central shows “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” are often top sellers as well.
- By Brian Stelter
From: Nytimes.com
After DD's win, Californication is #1 on iTunes.
ReplyDeleteFrom the New York Times ... 1-15-08
http://tvdecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/15/showtime-plays-well-on-itunes/
January 15, 2008, 11:00 am
Showtime Plays Well on iTunes
By Brian Stelter
INSERT DESCRIPTION
iTunes sales of the Showtime series “Californication” rose after David Duchovny received a Golden Globe award for best actor in a comedic or musical series on Sunday.
NBC Universal’s spat with Apple’s iTunes over pricing issues has been well documented. But Showtime, a subsidiary of CBS Corporation, has found iTunes to be a good outlet for selling its shows. Last week Showtime shows accounted for six of the top ten television offerings on iTunes, measured by the number of purchases.
A key difference is that Showtime, unlike NBC, is a pay channel, and iTunes represents a good way for the network to disseminate its shows beyond its 15 million subscribers, said Rob Hayes, the company’s senior vice president for digital media.
“It’s a great sampling vehicle for us, helping people who don’t have Showtime to get exposed to our show,” Mr. Hayes said.
Mr. Hayes said that sales through iTunes provide a “nice piece of revenue” for Showtime but would not share specifics. Instead, he emphasized the sampling strategy.
The recently released first seasons of “The Tudors” and “Californication” were the No. 1 and 2 seasons on iTunes, according to Apple’s ranking. Apple does not release sales figures.
After David Duchovny received a Golden Globe award for best actor in a comedic or musical series, his show “Californication” moved into the No. 1 position.
The first two seasons of Showtime’s “Weeds” are also among the top ten best-selling seasons on iTunes. The Fox series “Family Guy” and the Comedy Central shows “The Daily Show” and “The Colbert Report” are often top sellers as well.