NYU Stern School of Business - Undergraduate College TELEVISON MANAGEMENT: NETWORK, CABLE/SATELLITE, SVOD, OTT Spring 2016 COURSE DESCRIPTION AND LEARNING GOALS The class will give an overview of the history of the medium, with a primary focus on the evolution of television from 3 broadcast networks, to a multichannel universe, to today s multiplatform, TV-everywhere experience. We will dissect how technology changes the distribution, consumption, measurement and creation of TV. By the end of this course, students should have strong working knowledge of the how the television business evolved to its current state, and some idea of where it might head. REQUIRED COURSE MATERIALS The Television Will Be Revolutionized Second Edition, Amanda D. Lotz (2014) Kindle Edition Available TV OUTSIDE THE BOX: Trailblazing in the Digital Television Revolution Neil Landau (2015) The Revolution Was Televised: The Cops, Crooks, Slingers and Slayers Who Changed TV Drama Forever, Alan Sepinwall (2012) TV 101; Shapiro Lecture - http://bit.ly/zjibi5 Paley Center Presentation - http://bit.ly/ueceqb Shapiro Television Blogs - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/evan-shapiro/ Cynopsis (daily) Emily Steele (NY Times, weekly) MediaPost (daily) TVbythenumbers.com (weekly) Re/Code aka recode.net (weekly) DeadlineHollywood.com (daily) OTF Assignments: reading assigned based on current events in the industry ASSESSMENT COMPONENTS Weekly Discussion Papers * 30% Individual Assignment #1 35% Group Assignment #2 35% * ONE PAGE topic briefs on subjects of your choosing (class discussions, weekly reading assignments, happenings in the industry.), graded with, + or -. Demonstrate your currency in the class content and your engagement in the class itself. Remember, they are 30% of your grade. COURSE OUTLINE
Class 1 (1/27) Television 101: What is Television? A lecture on the history of Television from inception through the present day, including the state of TV in the present day. The Television Will Be Revolutionized - Introduction + Chapters 1 & 2 Viewing: TV 101: http://bit.ly/zjibi5 Paley Presentation: http://bit.ly/ueceqb Class 2 (2/3) Television and Technology Technology has been primary driver of change in television, taking us from 3 networks to platforms of nearly limitless choice. A lecture on how technology has morphed TV from a mass medium to a fragmented experience. The Television Will Be Revolutionized - Chapter 2 + Conclusion TV: An Intervention : http://huff.to/w7as4x Weekly Reading Class 3 (2/10) Breaking the Bottleneck: The Changing Distribution of Television If Content is King, distribution is the power behind the throne. We will discuss the shift from the linear trickle of programming during the Network Era to the endless ocean of content into which audiences now dip in at will. The Television Will Be Revolutionized - Chapter 4 Guest Lecture: Ron Lamprecht, EVP, Digital Distribution, NBCUniversal
Class 4 (2/17) The Economics & Ownership Of Television The changing system of who creates and owns programming effects every aspect of television. We will discuss how financial decisions effect the creative process, how the financing of content has changed since the end of the Network era, and how these have effected the overall make up and quality of television on the whole. The Television Will Be Revolutionized - Chapter 3 The Revolution Was Televised: The Cops, Crooks, Slingers and Slayers Who Changed TV Drama Forever all GROUPS FOR ASSIGNMENT #2 CHOSEN Class 5 (2/24) MAD MEN: The Latent Economics of Television Advertising A discussion of the reinvention of advertising since the end of the network era, and how the adjustments in the television marketing have changed TV as a cultural institution. The Television Will Be Revolutionized - Chapter 5 Guest Lecture: Scott Schiller, EVP, Ad Sales - Digital Video Class 6 (3/2) The Recount: How changes in Measurement changes Television To Paraphrase Jon Gertner: Change the way you measure and you change the television business and even the culture itself. A lecture on the transformation of audience measurement, from pure counting of eyeballs, to tracking of individual preferences and the segmentation of audiences into demographic and psychographic fragments. The Television Will Be Revolutionized - Chapter 6 Guest Speaker: Chrsitie Kawada, EVP, Product Management and Innovation at GfK
Class 7 (3/9) Lecture: TBD ASSIGNMENT #1 DUE (3/16) SPRING BREAK - NO CLASS Class 8 (3/23) THE GIG: Getting a Job in TV Guest Lecture: TBD Class 9 (3/30) CASE STUDY: HOW A SHOW BECOMES TV Class 10 IN CLASS WORKSHOP #1 (4/6) BUILDING TV BRAND X Class 11 THE STATE OF TV TODAY (4/13) WORKSHOP #2: BUILDING TV BRAND X Viewing: Paley Center Presentation - http://bit.ly/ueceqb Class 12 IN CLASS WORKSHOP #3 (4/20) BUILDING TV BRAND X Class 13 ASSIGNMENT #2: Group 1 Presentations (4/27) Presentations to Industry Expert Panel Class 14 ASSIGNMENT #2: Group 2 Presentations (5/4) Presentations to Industry Expert Panel
ASSIGNMENT 1 UPDATE THE REVOLUTION - DUE WEEK 7 Propose the specific changes in the industry (since the end of the mutli channel era, as identified by Lotz) that have had the most significant impact on the industry and the larger culture over the past decade. Support your thesis with research, and suggest ways these factors may continue to effect television over the next decade. 5-10 pages, (double spaced, 1 margins) Must include full annotated bibliography and footnotes or end notes Page count does not include bibliography or notes ASSIGNMENT 2 UPDATE THE REVOLUTION - DUE WEEK 13 A group project, where each team will synthesize the information, discussions, reading and case studies from the semester into a cohesive proposal for TV BRAND X! TV BRAND X can be literally any new or newly reimagined TV product, brand, channel, series or technology: A TV Network you think could be more successful as digital only channel; A new binge-watch only series catering to today s audiences; A new subscription on demand aggregator that improves on Netflix; A way to fix Hulu anything your hearts desire. The proposal must touch all functional areas of TV operations in some way programming, advertising, distribution, research and technology and should be supported by as much research necessary to prove the viability of the team s concept. It should be ambitious, but not a blue-sky work of fiction. This presentation should be developed as a pitch (powerpoint, Prezi, video, other formats) and will be presented to a panel of industry experts for their feedback and judgment. Each team member is expected to contribute to the presentation, and each student s contributions should be as clearly delineated as possible. The class will split into four groups, and each group will have half a class (35 minutes) to present and take Q&A. All research must sourced Presentation must be handed in on a flash drive, which will not be returned.
GROUP PROJECTS Guidelines for Group Projects Business activities involve group effort. Consequently, learning how to work effectively in a group is a critical part of your business education. Every member is expected to carry an equal share of the group s workload. As such, it is in your interest to be involved in all aspects of the project. Even if you divide the work rather than work on each piece together, you are still responsible for each part. The group project will be graded as a whole: its different components will not be graded separately. Your exams may contain questions that are based on aspects of your group projects. It is recommended that each group establish ground rules early in the process to facilitate your joint work including a problem-solving process for handling conflicts. In the infrequent case where you believe that a group member is not carrying out his or her fair share of work, you are urged not to permit problems to develop to a point where they become serious. If you cannot resolve conflicts internally after your best efforts, they should be brought to my attention and I will work with you to find a resolution. GRADING At NYU Stern we seek to teach challenging courses that allow students to demonstrate their mastery of the subject matter. In general, students in undergraduate core courses can expect a grading distribution where: 25-35% of students can expect to receive A s for excellent work 50-70% of students can expect to receive B s for good or very good work 5-15% of students can expect to receive C s or less for adequate or below work Note that while the School uses these ranges as a guide, the actual distribution for this course and your own grade will depend upon how well you actually perform in this course. PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THIS COURSE Attendance Class attendance is essential to your success in this course and is part of your grade. An excused absence can only be granted in cases of serious illness, grave family emergencies, or religious observance and must be documented. Job interviews and incompatible travel plans are considered unexcused absences. Where possible, please notify me in advance of an excused absence.
Participation In-class contribution is a significant part of your grade and an important part of our shared learning experience. Your active participation helps me to evaluate your overall performance. You can excel in this area if you come to class on time and contribute to the course by: Providing strong evidence of having thought through the material. Advancing the discussion by contributing insightful comments and questions. Listening attentively in class. Demonstrating interest in your peers' comments, questions, and presentations. Giving constructive feedback to your peers when appropriate. Assignments Late assignments will either not be accepted or will incur a grade penalty unless due to documented serious illness or family emergency. Exceptions to this policy for reasons of religious observance or civic obligation will only be made available when the assignment cannot reasonably be completed prior to the due date and you make arrangements for late submission in advance.