Still, there are serious questions about how sustainable all of this is. Trend lines certainly suggest things could go in the other direction. Networks are having trouble showing how many people are watching their content across a wide variety of platforms, audiences are growing accustomed to platforms where they can watch shows without commercials, and marketers are eager to find better ways to target potential customers. And at present, broadcast television is holding an edge thanks to an older audience. The median age for scripted TV’s No. 1 show, “The Big Bang Theory,” and one of its top reality shows, “The Voice,” is 55. Among 18- to 49-year-olds, ratings in broadcast television fell by 11 percent this season. “If you just look at where the business is going, we’re in a transitional phase now where to a large degree, boomers are keeping television as we define it today afloat,” said Kevin Reilly, the chief creative officer of Turner Entertainment. Advertisers are aware that this may not last forever. GroupM predicted that digital platforms would be taking a growing share of new advertising dollars. Still, even though digital players are surging, television remains the established elder statesman for advertisers. GroupM noted that television accounted for 42 percent of advertising investments last year, compared with 31 percent for digital. The sophistication of Google’s and Facebook’s ability to target ads is no small matter, though, and TV networks have been scrambling to find ways to compete in that arena. Digital companies are capable of targeting audiences so narrow that they can pinpoint, say, Idaho residents in long-distance relationships who are contemplating buying a minivan. (Facebook’s ads manager says that description matches 3,100 people.)
Advertisers are still putting their faith in television despite a broad consumer move towards online viewing on platforms such as Facebook, Netflix and YouTube. The industry is looking to spend as much as $9bn this year on television advertising, believing that the reliability and wide delivery of television adverts keep the medium relevant in the digital age. This confidence is compounded by the recent controversies with Facebook and YouTube’s ad placement. Television accounted for 42% of total ad spend last year, while digital made up 31%, according to data from GroupM.