Wait a minute...


NBC exec says ad-supported online TV more profitable than iTunes

Associated Press (Wired) is running a "soft analysis" piece on the state of ad-supported online TV programming. It's got quotes from a likely coterie of talking heads, including a bit from an NBC Universal wonk that caught my attention.

For TV shows at least, ad-supported free viewing online has proved more profitable than fee-based video downloads on services like Apple Inc's iTunes, said George Kliavkoff, chief digital officer of NBC Universal.

Does that statement seem just a little disingenuous to you, too?

Assuming a content owner gets 70% of the take (like music on iTunes or the iPhone App Store) from the sale of a show ($1.99), then NBC would net about $1.40 each time someone downloaded one of their shows from iTunes.

Is it possible that NBC, which pulled its content from iTunes last year, is netting $1.40 per viewer from ad-supported TV content online?

The answer is, "Of course not." Analysts estimate that the networks charge anywhere from $35 to $50 per thousand viewers, which yields a per viewer net of just 3.5¢ to 5¢ each.

That said, in leaving iTunes it's apparent that NBC has bitten off its nose to spite its face...

What's your take?

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