Comcast Ad Sales Consolidates Markets, Makes Purchasing Cable Advertising Easier

Comcast Ad Sales, a division of Comcast Cable, announced today that in the first quarter of 2003 it has completed interconnects in Seattle; Salt Lake City; Flint and Lansing, Mich.; Fort Wayne and South Bend, Ind.; Richmond, Va.; Salisbury, Md.; Miami and Jacksonville, Fla. In addition, Comcast worked with Adelphia to interconnect West Palm Beach, Fla., and with Time Warner Cable, Charter, Mediacom and US Cable to interconnect Minneapolis. This multitude of interconnect activity represents a major step in Comcast's goal to consolidate its markets and simplify the purchase of cable advertising.

For advertisers, this means a single point of contact, standardized affidavits and easier invoicing. Additionally, Comcast interconnects must meet stringent criteria and standards before they are launched, allowing for greater process consistency across markets.

For Comcast Ad Sales, this achievement places the company nearer to the completion of two key initiatives: consolidating markets by bringing all systems within a market together to create interconnects, as well as standardizing network lineups across markets to provide a consistent offering to advertisers.

"Comcast Ad Sales is committed to setting the benchmark for the way cable advertising is bought and sold," says Charlie Thurston, president of Comcast Ad Sales. "These 12 newly-connected markets denote an important stride in Comcast's goal of creating a unified ad sales business and providing advertisers with an easy, one-stop shopping experience on a scale never seen before in cable."

On the heels of its recently completed transaction with AT&T Broadband, Comcast now has a national footprint. Comcast Ad Sales will reach nearly 30 million subscribers in 71 of the nation's 210 DMAs, including 22 of the top 25 markets. The company is striving to quickly secure interconnects in 54 Comcast-owned markets.

Advertising on Cable
Wired cable television reaches more than 70 percent of all households and viewership continues to grow.* In fact, according to the Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau, ad-supported cable experienced unprecedented viewership growth in 2002 and it generated 51 percent of the top 10 national TV advertisers' total day household impressions in the 2001/02 season.**

As innovations in cable programming develop and with cable viewership experiencing a dramatic rise, cable television advertising is becoming more established as a precise and effective alternative to mass or broadcast advertising.

"Unlike traditional broadcast TV, cable television is a very selective medium," says Thurston. "Advertisers have come to depend on cable to effectively deliver to mass audiences and selective lifestyle targets. Comcast Ad Sales is committed to further mainstreaming the cable buying process by making it as easy to buy as broadcast and fulfilling the promise of cable."

About Comcast Ad Sales
Comcast Ad Sales is committed to providing a one-stop shopping experience making cable as easy to buy as broadcast. Dedicated to building the preeminent advertising and sales organization for the cable industry, Comcast Ad Sales is helping advertisers and their agencies more efficiently and effectively target customers. Headquartered in New York with regional and local advertising offices throughout the country, Comcast Ad Sales employs nearly 3,100 people and has a major presence in 22 of the top 25 television markets.

*Nielsen: Based on monthly cable coverage area HH universe estimates

** Nielsen Ad Views: Oct-Sept 01/02
 

Contacts:
Dana Runnells/Amy Brookler
Comcast Ad Sales
917-934-1015/1974
dana_runnells@cable.comcast.com
amy_brookler@cable.comcast.com