The Walking Dead ratings success could boost rates for 30-second commercial spots to what the NFL charges.
The season 4 premiere of The Walking Dead brought a record-shattering 16 million viewers on Sunday night, not including DVR viewers. The zombie apocalypse show also scored big with the all-important 18-49 demographic, the cohort advertisers particularly love.
As a result, the AMC network reportedly could demand as much as $600,000 for half-minute commercial, similar to what NBC Sunday Night Football rakes in. NBC reportedly bills about $570,000 per spot for the National Football League game each week.
The New York Post reports that “With the strong ratings in hand — the audience for Walking Dead was larger than that of all of its rival Sunday-night dramas combined — AMC, run by President Charlie Collier, is seeking as much as $600,000… Smart ad buyers could have had ad spots on the Walking Dead in May for $300,000 to $400,000, some buyers told The Post, although for that price you got one original show plus two re-runs.”
The challenge for advertisers is that millions of people record the show in part so they can fast-forward through the commercials.
According to AdAge , The Walking Dead success has significantly altered the television advertising landscape: “ The Walking Dead has also defied tradition when it comes to advertising. The biggest brands have long bought into family-friendly programming that attracts broad audiences. But marketers are becoming increasingly accepting of grittier fare, and some have proven willing to pay broadcast-like prices for the big, desirable The Walking Dead audience… It’s also expensive, however, to buy 30 seconds of Walking Dead ad time. Marketers purchasing commercials in the so-called scatter market, where commercial slots are sold relatively close to the air date, encountered prices last season around $400,000, according to media buyers.”
In addition to its viewership, The Walking Dead also has a lot of social media buzz going for it, which advertisers view favorably.
What do you think of the possibility of The Walking Dead charging NFL prices for commercials? Are there already too many commercials during The Walking Dead ?