justplainbil

Just Plain Bill

Tired of all the commercials on TV?

Have you noticed lately that the amount of time dedicated to commercials on TV is growing? And, have you wondered if it’s always been that way?

I can remember when there was a “reasonable” limit on the amount of time for commercials on TV. I know it was less than what I’m experiencing these days, so I checked the Internet to see if my assumptions were correct.

According to Marketing Charts, an “Average Hour-Long TV Show is 36% Commercials.” Wow. I knew it was a lot, but I didn’t know it was that much. And to take it a step further, their research also shows that late night shows are often 50% commercials. Ugh.

As a budding social psychologist, I believe the impact of the growing use of commercials first began to be somewhat ameliorated by the invention and popularity of the TV remote control. The TV remote, available since Zenith produced theirs in 1950 (it was called “lazy bones”), enabled us to either turn off the sound when the commercials came on or simply change the channel to “get away” from the incessant commercials.

An excellent contribution and personal irritation from my editor, Allyn Geer: “Commercial avoidance was later aided by the short-lived Sony Betamax, which was trounced in the market share battle by the VHS VCR. We recorded our shows not just for convenience of viewing according to our schedules, but for the sheer delight in being able to fast forward through the annoyances. Presently of course, we’re witnessing explosive growth of television shows on DVD, DVRs that work like a VCR but able to fast forward at warp speed, and subscription TV that allows us to enjoy commercial-free programs. I had high hopes for the ‘on demand’ channels offered by my cable company. At first, I could fast-forward through the short and redundant ads. Alas, the networks no longer allow fast forwarding through their superfluous, self-serving promotions, in spite of the fact the cable company markets ‘on demand’ as a benefit from my monthly subscription. Ha, I’ve gone back to the DVR.”

Finally, this subject of commercial regulation is an area that is hay for debate in the political arena. (More on this “let the markets regulate themselves” philosophy in a later blog.)

The question then becomes “should the industry be able to ‘regulate’ itself?” For television, the answer seems to me to be a resounding “NO!”