For viewers, this should be a welcome change; it means two entire commercial pods being cut out. In their place, viewers can expect to see more program content, albeit some sponsored by advertisers. SNL is no stranger to branded sketches, though, so at least it doesn’t sound like the audience will be blindsided by an unfamiliar form of advertising. The late-night show’s linear ratings have been on the decline in recent years, as Deadline points out, even as skits continue to be popular online. Cutting down on commercial break time is one way the network hopes to bring viewers’ eyes back to live broadcasts. The show is called Saturday Night Live, after all. “As the decades have gone by, commercial time has grown,” said Lorne Michaels, SNL creator and executive producer, in a statement. “This will give time back to the show and make it easier to watch the show live.” NBC has been looking to experiment with advertising lately. The SNL switch-up comes just days after the network revealed that June’s two-hour Aquarius season 2 premiere would be broadcast commercial-free. The NBCUniversal subsidiary isn’t alone, either. Multiple major media and entertainment companies have been forced to readjust their ad strategies as audiences look to ad-free options like Netflix, Amazon Instant Video, and others. It’s hard not to get excited as a viewer, but you can bet that network execs are feeling some pressure. It’s up to them to find their ideal balance between making audiences happy and bringing in revenue.
Following decades of increasing numbers of commercials on TV, many networks are now starting to cut them back as they seek to stem the shrinking audiences and attract young viewers, who have shifted to on-demand services such as Netflix and YouTube. For instance, ads shown during Saturday Night Live are to be cut by 30% next season, and Time Warner have announced plans to cut the ad load on some programming by 50%. This follows a similar trend happening on online advertisers as well, with YouTube releasing its Red subscription service thereby allowing viewers the option for a premium ad-free experience. All this means is that advertising is heading towards a major transformation.