Response articles from March 2004

Response archives from March 2004

The power of the pen puts Response at the forefront of change in DRTV.(Editor's Note)(direct response television)(Editorial)
March 1, 2004... "An editor is one who separates the wheat from the chaff--and prints the chaff." --Adlai Stevenson Thanks for that, Adlai. Maybe that's why I've always preferred considering myself a writer rather than an editor. After all, it's long...

Federal court turns down FTC injunction request against BodyFlex.(Legal)(United States. Federal Trade Commission, Savvier Inc.)
March 1, 2004... LOS ANGELES -- A federal judge has denied the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) original request for an injunction against the advertisement of the BodyFlex weight-loss system. In the ruling, U.S. District Judge Florence-Marie Cooper contends...

HSN files multimillion dollar suit against Kirby, E-Brands, United Fitness of America: Kirby, attorney Levitt call charges "unsubstantiated" and "baseless".(Special Report)
March 1, 2004... TAMPA, Fla., and SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- Citing a "lengthy and repeated pattern of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty," home-shopping giant HSN has filed suit in federal court against Electronic Retailing Association (ERA) Chairman and former...

Hall Dickler LLP unites with Reed Smith LLP.(News Brief)(Doug Wood to head merged firm's Advertising and Marketing Law Group)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- On Feb. 1, 21 attorneys from Hall Dickler LLP joined Reed Smith LLP, a top 20 international law firm. The New York-based practice is operating under the name Reed Smith Hall Dickler. In addition, Hall Dickler's New York and Beverly...

Jordan Whitney's program rankings.(Research)(Illustration)
March 1, 2004... Top 10 Infomercials Rank Last Month Program Host 1 2 Carleton Sheets Carleton Sheets 2 NR 6-Second Abs Mindy Milrea 3 NR Ab Scissor Jake Steinfeld 4 ...

The IMS top 20 DRTV national cable rankings.(Research)(Illustration)
March 1, 2004... Long-Form Programs Rank Weeks on Chart Show Marketing Company Count 1 575 Carleton Sheets Professional Education Institute 506 2 258 ...

Riding the DRTV lifecycle.(From the Lab)(Direct Response Television )
March 1, 2004... We all remember learning about the "Nitrogen Cycle" in junior high school (and giggling about "organic residue"). Most industry veterans would say DRTV definitely behaves cyclically. So, why not look at a successful DRTV campaign like we did...

REVShare search engine Internet popularity report.(Research)(Illustration)
March 1, 2004... RANK TITLE DISTRIBUTOR NUMBER OF SEARCHES 1 Total Gym American Telecast 221,458 2 Bowflex Bowflex Inc. 208,338 3 CortiSlim ...

Fourth-quarter long-form media billings show nearly 4% growth: 'Health and fitness' flexes its muscles to edge out the competition.(4th Quarter Long-Form Media Billings)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2004... Long-form media billings in fourth-quarter 2003 continued to climb out of its 2001 slump, despite posting a smaller-than-projected rise in holiday retail sales. For DRTV, long-form media billings totaled $232,552,406, which actually surpassed...

Short-form DRTV media billings fall by 11% in 4Q 2003: 'Housewares and appliances' tops the list.(4th Quarter Short-Form Media Billings)
March 1, 2004... Short-form media billings performed below expectations in fourth-quarter 2003. In fact, total billings dipped 11.4 percent, to $96,649,427, compared to the same period the previous year in which short-form media billings were on the upswing....

Is the ERA Board election process ultimately fair? According to board members and general members alike, the answer is a resounding 'Yes!' It's just one way the association is creating more organizational transparency in an effort to shed lingering negative images.(Cover Story)
March 1, 2004... "You gain from ERA what you are willing to put into it," says Scott Swanson, vice president at Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Fairway Media, which is a member of the Electronic Retailing Association (ERA). "If members are not happy with the current...

Interactive technologies slowly mix into DRTV blend: while the Internet soars for DR marketers, other interactive technologies, such as ITV and M-commerce, are still waiting in the wings.(Interactivity)
March 1, 2004... A television viewer sees a great-looking outfit on an actress and clicks "buy" on her remote control. A man walks by his favorite clothing store and instantly receives the latest sale information, beamed right to his cell phone. A consumer...

Shopping for a bigger audience: the big 4 TV shopping networks are capitalizing on new products, branding capabilities and technological advances to expand their reach and profits.(Home Shopping)
March 1, 2004... Shhhhhh. Listen. Closely. Inside a home. The sound of tapping. Rhythmical tapping. A woman is tapping her feet to music. She must be watching MTV or, maybe, VH1. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Actually, it's neither. She's watching a home...

Using new technology makes tracking easier for buyers and planners.(Media Zone)
March 1, 2004... As the need for communications between clients and agencies grows, technology takes on increasing importance--well beyond faxes, E-mails and activity reports. So if you are involved in managing promotions for clients, you know what it's like to...

TiVo, Nielsen agree to market DVR usage info.(Tech News)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- In a joint announcement, TiVo and Nielsen Media Research announce an agreement to deliver information on digital video recorder (DVR) usage to the television industry. The new service, which is designed to help advertisers, agencies...

Warren Direct acquires Fast Media.(Brief Article)
March 1, 2004... AUSTIN, Texas -- Integrated direct response and direct marketing agency Warren Direct announces it has completed the acquisition of Fast Media LLC. Fast Media is a direct response media-buying agency that specializes in buying infomercial time...

'Inquiry to sale'--conversions and how they build business.(Support Services)
March 1, 2004... Converting a consumer inquiry to a sale and finding the right formula of exact, persuasive information is what separates a successful, customer-centric campaign from a passive, one-time-only DR product sale. Simply, this process and application...

DMA publishes 'quick-glance' guide to CAN SPAM Act.(Support Services)(Direct Marketing Association)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2004... NEW YORK -- The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) releases a new quick-glance reference guide designed to empower marketers and consumers alike to make sense of the CAN SPAM Act, the first national anti-spam law in the United States. The...

New fed caller ID rules now in effect for telemarketers.(Federal Trade Commission)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2004... WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Effective Jan. 29, the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) revised Telephone Sales Rule (TSR) requires every outbound telephone solicitation call to transmit a phone number--via caller ID--of the seller or service bureau that...

OneWorldLive launches 'Guaranteed Profits In Box'.(Brief Article)
March 1, 2004... LOS ANGELES -- OneWorldLive, a product development, marketing and distribution company, announces the launch of its results-generating "Guaranteed Profit In Box" program. The program utilizes the company's proprietary Profit Optimization...

New Product Program: the Inventors' Showcase.(ERA Report)
March 1, 2004... At the heart of every great direct response advertising campaign lay a solid and inventive product, full of creativity and overflowing with potential. These products are often the culmination of years of hard work from an inventor who had a...