By Marc Berman and Nellie Andreeva

Long-running CBS daytime serial "As the World Turns," which premiered on April 2, 1956, has amassed 58 Daytime Emmys and launched the careers of such actors as Julianne Moore and Dana Delany, will conclude its more than five-decade run in September.

It has become the latest daytime soap to get the ax as daytime viewership is dwindling, forcing the networks to look for cheaper alternatives.

Top-rated from 1959-71, "As the World Turns" switched to color in 1967 and expanded to one hour in 1975. It is the longest-running daytime drama airing on TV following the cancellation of CBS’ "Guiding Light."

"We are disappointed and saddened by the news that the show is not being renewed," executive producer Chris Goutman said. "It will certainly be a loss for all of us, and for the show’s loyal audience."

The show’s producer, Procter & Gable’s TeleNext Media, vowed to search for a new home for the show, but the odds of "As the World Turns" continuing are slim.

The producers of NBC’s soap "Passions" sold the show to DirecTV after NBC canceled it in 2007 but it lasted on the satcaster less than a year before shutting down for good.

In September, CBS’s veteran "Guiding Light," also produced by TeleNext, went off the air after 57 years. It was replaced it with an updated version of game show classic "Let’s Make a Deal," hosted by Wayne Brady, which has done respectably in the ratings.

There has been no announced replacement for "As the World Turns" but the network is expected to go a similar route, looking at talk shows and game shows for potential replacements.

ABC also had been exploring potentially subbing one of its daytime soaps with a talk show and in the summer moved production on veteran "All My Children" from New York to Los Angeles.

This fall, the genre got a boost by film star James Franco who signed on to do an arc on ABC’s "General Hospital."

"It’s extremely difficult to say good-bye to a long-running series that’s been close to our hearts for so long," said CBS’ senior vp daytime programming Barbara Bloom. "The almanacs will show ‘As the World Turns’ as a pioneer of the format, a hallmark for quality with its numerous Emmys, the launching pad for many television and film stars and a daytime ratings powerhouse for parts of three decades."

By Marc Berman and Nellie Andreeva

Long-running CBS daytime serial "As the World Turns," which premiered on April 2, 1956, has amassed 58 Daytime Emmys and launched the careers of such actors as Julianne Moore and Dana Delany, will conclude its more than five-decade run in September.

It has become the latest daytime soap to get the ax as daytime viewership is dwindling, forcing the networks to look for cheaper alternatives.

Top-rated from 1959-71, "As the World Turns" switched to color in 1967 and expanded to one hour in 1975. It is the longest-running daytime drama airing on TV following the cancellation of CBS’ "Guiding Light."

"We are disappointed and saddened by the news that the show is not being renewed," executive producer Chris Goutman said. "It will certainly be a loss for all of us, and for the show’s loyal audience."

The show’s producer, Procter & Gable’s TeleNext Media, vowed to search for a new home for the show, but the odds of "As the World Turns" continuing are slim.

The producers of NBC’s soap "Passions" sold the show to DirecTV after NBC canceled it in 2007 but it lasted on the satcaster less than a year before shutting down for good.

In September, CBS’s veteran "Guiding Light," also produced by TeleNext, went off the air after 57 years. It was replaced it with an updated version of game show classic "Let’s Make a Deal," hosted by Wayne Brady, which has done respectably in the ratings.

There has been no announced replacement for "As the World Turns" but the network is expected to go a similar route, looking at talk shows and game shows for potential replacements.

ABC also had been exploring potentially subbing one of its daytime soaps with a talk show and in the summer moved production on veteran "All My Children" from New York to Los Angeles.

This fall, the genre got a boost by film star James Franco who signed on to do an arc on ABC’s "General Hospital."

"It’s extremely difficult to say good-bye to a long-running series that’s been close to our hearts for so long," said CBS’ senior vp daytime programming Barbara Bloom. "The almanacs will show ‘As the World Turns’ as a pioneer of the format, a hallmark for quality with its numerous Emmys, the launching pad for many television and film stars and a daytime ratings powerhouse for parts of three decades."

Research head Dave Poltrack thanked UBS for letting him do his annual conference presentation on a Wednesday as opposed to his usual Monday. He needed the chance to recover from a recent trip returned from China. There are many things the U.S. could learn from China, but Poltrack was most impressed with the way that country holds an upfront. Not only were ad commitments up 18 percent, but China’s upfront lasts just one day—a sharp contrast to the months-long buildup and negotiations here. After ruminating on the blurring definition of exactly what a broadcast network, narrowly defined is, he turned to his ad spend forecast. Some good news for broadcast: ad revenues will be up 5 percent in 2010, after declining an estimated 7 percent this year.

On top of the recession, broadcast suffered in ‘09 due to the lack of a big media event like the Olympics. The networks withheld 15 percent of the inventory from the past upfront, betting that the economy would get stronger. So far, scatter is up double digits, suggesting the bet may have paid off.

Turning to DVR stats, Poltrack said the technology now accounts for a quarter of all primetime viewing. The growth of DVR penetration is abating somewhat, but it isn’t close to reaching a plateau.

The use of DVRs is inspiring a slew of measurement systems. The main currency for audience measurement used to be “eyeballs”—the new approaches will emphasize “outcomes” to a greater degree.

CBS Corp. Chief Executive Leslie Moonves is one happy man.

"Life is so much better for us than it was a year ago," he said Tuesday morning at the UBS media conference in New York. "Last year the advertising market was on the ropes, stations were getting socked, and CBS stock seemed to be in a free fall. But CBS’ stock is back up and most of its core businesses are humming."

Moonves was characteristically upbeat and confident. "I’m tired of reading how network television is down," he said. "Network television still is pretty darn strong."

Moonves said that the advertising market was rebounding and that CBS expected to take in about $100 million more in the fourth quarter than it did a year earlier. The network, he said, has been pulling some of its own promotions out of prime-time and late-night shows to make way for paying customers. The Super Bowl is 90% sold out, and commercial spots are hitting the $3-million mark.

read the entire article from the Los Angeles Times

NBC’s Sunday Night Football franchise—which saw New England take on Indianapolis this past weekend—was on the top of the weekly ratings chart for the broadcast networks for the week ending Nov. 15, drawing 22.4 million viewers to watch the pigskin showdown. But the overall winner on the Top 20? Without question: CBS, which served up 12 of the shows in the Top 20. The No. 2 spot went to the high-performing network, as TV’s top scripted show, NCIS, drew 21.0 million viewers. ABC’s Dancing with the Stars was still strong, though, and landed at No. 3, with a still-distant-from-NCIS 17.6 million viewers.

The rest of the Top 20, however, packed few surprises, and is instead filled with the usual suspects, including CBS’ The Mentalist (No. 6), ABC’s Desperate Housewives (No. 10), CBS’ Two and a Half Men (No. 12), CBS’ newbie The Good Wife (No. 14), and even ABC’s long-running Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (No. 20). The one out-of-the-ordinary special that did make the list was the country star-studded CMA Awards, which landed in a plum spot at No. 5, drawing a very healthy 17.2 million viewers.

read the entire article from Hollywood Insider

"Did you hear who’s going to play during the Super Bowl halftime show?"

"No, who?"
"That’s what I just said. Who."
"No, seriously. Which is the band that’s going to appear?"
"It’s Who."
"I’m not talking proper English. Which band will be on CBS’s halftime show on February 7 at Landshark Stadium in Miami?"
"The Who — you know, Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend. ‘Tommy, can you hear me?’"
"Oh! Why didn’t you just say that!"

Okay, I couldn’t resist the nod to Abbott and Costello’s Who’s On First. But the fact is that Sports Illustrated has spread the word that The Who will star in the Super Bowl big, overblown half-time pageant. This follows the safe pattern the NFL has been employing since the Janet Jackson-Justin Timberlake costume malfunction; that is, stick with classic rock stars who are guaranteed to do their hits and not disrobe. That’s why we’ve had Prince, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and now The Who. All superstar acts, no controversy.

read the entire article from TV Squad

The consolidation between A&E Networks and Lifetime has begun.

With more than 100 pink slips passed over the past week across the A&E Television Networks landscape. Layoffs are across the board, with Lifetime departments like legal, human resources, publicity and marketing particularly hard hit.

Out in the shuffle are Lifetime head of reality Jessica Samet and head of casting Rick Jacobs.

AETN has been mapping out its consolidation plans for weeks, and looking at ways to remove some redundancies and merge certain areas. As part of that process, several execs had already opted to exit, including Pat Langer, Lifetime’s exec VP for business affairs, legal and human resources, and Lifetime exec VP-chief financial officer James Wesley.

Meanwhile, Lifetime research chief Mike Greco has been named the head of research for all of AETN, replacing Dave Marans, who has departed.
And Lifetime digital topper Dan Surratt will now head up digital for all of AETN.

read the entire article at Broadcast Union News

by Tanner Stransky

In a first in the late-night talk show world,

CBS’ Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson beat NBC’s Late Night with Jimmy Fallon in the coveted 18-49 demo, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Ferguson has been inching closer to this for a while: In five of the last seven weeks, he’s tied Fallon. But this is the first time since Ferguson’s 2005 premiere that he’s beaten his competitor from NBC in the advertiser-coveted demo. Jimmy Kimmel Live! managed to tie Late Night last week, too.

from Entertainment Weekly dot com

Voice work pact previously rejected by SAG

Members of the American Federation of Television & Radio Artists have approved a new deal for videogame voice work — two weeks after SAG members rejected the same pact.

AFTRA, which made the announcement Thursday, said the deal received backing from 66% of those casting ballots. The pact was sent out to AFTRA’s 2,200 members who work under the contract.

AFTRA covers the lion’s share of unionized voice work for vidgames. SAG, which has asked the companies to return to the bargaining table, had no immediate response to Thursday’s announcement.

The two performers’ unions have generally made little headway with vidgame companies; an estimated 75% of the voice work performed goes to non-union performers.

read the entire article from Variety

Head of WCBS-New York takes over all 29 stations, reporting to new GM Peter Dunn

The same week CBS Corp. said it would promote WCBS-New York president and general manager Peter Dunn to head of the company’s television stations, the Eye has announced a number of other management restructuring moves as the media company looks to have a stronger foothold in local television markets.

Among the changes, Anton Guitano will become the chief operating officer of CBS Local Media, the company’s new local broadcasting segment, according to a release. Guitano was chief financial officer and senior executive vice president of operations for CBS Radio.

Guitano will report directly to CBS Corp. head Les Moonves as well as CBS Radio chief Dan Mason, and Dunn. Guitano is expected to lead CBS’ efforts to capitalize on local news and Internet properties collection throughout the country.

read the entire article from Inside Blip