Paramount Is 'Not Going Back' to Upfront Week, Exec Says

Paramount will be the only major media company on the outside looking in during advertising's annual upfront week, which begins May 15—but ad sales president John Halley insists he and his colleagues won't be suffering from any FOMO next week. Rather than hold its traditional big Carnegie Hall presentation followed by a lavish reception, the company announced late last year that it would hold more intimate upfront dinners with clients and partners instead. And after wrapping those New York upfront events in late April, with additional Chicago and Los Angeles dinners coming in the weeks ahead, Paramount is more certain than ever that it made the right call. "We're not going to go back to the old way of doing things," Halley told Adweek. "There's no question it was the right decision," Halley, who is overseeing his first upfront after his predecessor Jo Ann Ross transitioned her role to Chairman last fall, said of the company's decision to exit upfront week. "There's no question that it's more effective than the status quo event." For its upfront dinners, Paramount filled an exhibit space at Chelsea Factory to showcase its "Popular is Paramount" brand campaign. The space was adorned with iconic props from the company's IP, including The Price Is Right wheel, Star Trek costumes and even the Lombardi Trophy to represent CBS' upcoming broadcast of Super Bowl 58. In addition, Paramount talent were on hand for appearances, including Gayle King, Drew Barrymore and Stephen Colbert. "Our agency partners and clients felt close to what it was that we were doing. And we reflected a unified entity, and it was successful in giving people a feel for what we're trying to achieve through our content investment, all the way through to our huge audience footprint," Halley said. "We're very happy with the presentation, the representation of who we are. And combined with a format that is more expanded, it was very effective in helping frame and facilitate our upfront discussions." The ad sales president said the positive feedback was "unanimous" from attendees, who also expressed "a lot of gratitude" for a different take on upfront events. "It's interesting. I don't think in all these years people have really asked clients and agency partners what they actually think about the upfront week itself, and it turns out, a lot of them don't like it," Halley said. "It's too loud. It's too compressed. It's confusing. It's chaotic." Halley said the events led to a larger share of voice ahead of a crowded upfront week, facilitating "substantial" and "in-depth conversations." The ad sales president estimated that the company spent 36 hours total with its biggest partners, far eclipsing the usual five hours or so from one upfront week presentation and party. Inside Paramount’s ‘High-Impact, Intimate’ Upfront Dinners Avoiding some, but not all, strike issues In addition to having less one-on-one time with clients at their events, upfront week presenters will also have to deal with a new obstacle: the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike. WGA picketers already targeted NewFronts events last week, including Peacock's presentation, and more protests are planned for upfront week. "We did not anticipate that timing, obviously, when we made the decision," Halley told Adweek. "That absolutely is going to be super challenging for our peers." Paramount CEO Bob Bakish recently commented on the strike during a company earnings call, saying “there’s a pretty big gap” between the studios' and WGA's demands, so the company is prepared with "content in the can" if it becomes an extended endeavor. And while the strike didn't upend Paramount's upfront presentations, it is likely to impact upfront talks. "We're doing scenario planning, and nobody knows how long it's gonna last. And that obviously is the big question. Its impact is directly related to its duration," Halley said, talking about how the strike could affect negotiations. "As Bob put it on the call, there is a bit of a gap, and we're hopeful that it gets resolved quickly. But, like anything else, prepare for the worst and hope for the best." I don't think in all these years people have really asked clients and agency partners what they actually think about the upfront week itself, and it turns out, a lot of them don't like it,John Halley, Paramount ad sales chief In addition to the strike, the industry is dealing with other disruptions around this year's upfront, including an uncertain economic climate and continued fragmentation of viewing. Paramount has "unified representation of all of our assets under an organization that's focused on the agency," Halley told Adweek. "Each agency has one dedicated team that is committed to delivering convergent solutions based on the agency and the client data and infrastructure preferences—not ours—in premium environments, at scale, with the most popular content in the business," Halley said. "We're going to get through all these challenges through partnerships and working closely. It's something we've got to do together." No (Yellow)stone unturned Regarding its upcoming slate, Paramount is touting CBS series such as Ghosts and FBI; Paramount+ titles such as Wolf Pack and Star Trek Picard; and Taylor Sheridan's growing "Taylorverse" of shows, including Yellowstone, which Paramount said last week will end following Season 5's conclusion later this year, leading into a new spinoff from the franchise that is set to debut in December. Though it's still untitled, the spinoff will have Yellowstone in its name and be available to stream on Paramount+, not Peacock, which has exclusive streaming rights to Yellowstone. And with partners already clamoring to be part of Sheridan's universe, the company is looking to offer even more opportunities for advertisers to tap into the content. Sports is also a priority for the company, with March Madness, the Masters and Super Bowl 58, which is drawing massive interest. "It's unlike anything else. It really is. It's a thing that warrants discussion over a year in advance. We were talking about the 2024 Super Bowl before the 2023 Super Bowl had been played," Halley said. "It's going to be incredible. It's going to be the biggest event in the history of Las Vegas. Think about that for a moment. And we're thrilled about the prospects. We're so looking forward to it, and we're going to be ready." Scale also remained an important upfront topic for the company. During last week's earnings call, Paramount said that Paramount+ has grown to 60 million subscribers, while Pluto TV grew its monthly active users to 80 million and increased its viewing hours by 35% year-over-year. Meanwhile, EyeQ, the company's digital advertising platform, has grown to 90 million full-episode monthly unique viewers. The company is also investing in programmatic, convergent optimization, audience insights and DEI, which Halley called "incredibly core" to Paramount's ad offerings. "Representation is a very important topic of discussion for us this year. And it will be in the future. And we're in discussions with multiple brands about partnering on Content for Change," Halley said, bringing up Paramount's initiative for advancing diversity in its content ecosystem. "But this is, I think, the most important initiative that we have internally." Paramount Ad Sales Chief John Halley on Upfront Changes, the Reorg and What’s Next Future planning And with Nielsen sunsetting C3, the industry's standard for TV measurement, in the fall of 2024, Halley said Paramount's goal is to minimize client disruption in the multicurrency future. "The implication of that is enormous," Halley said of Nielsen's decision. "Because there will be no more status quo currency. And it's our job to make that transition as simple as possible for our clients." Looking ahead to Paramount's 2024 upfront client dinners, Halley said he "wouldn't expect too many changes" next year. "However the market shakes out, we're going to do better. We're going to gain share," Halley said. "And I think that has everything to do with the crispness and appropriateness of our message relative to a bit of a chaotic media environment and our ability to really progress our conversations in an open two-way setting."

TV Upfronts

Paramount Is 'Not Going Back' to Upfront Week, Says Ad Sales Chief

John Halley said there's 'no question' that the company made the right decision in shifting to client dinners

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