Mightiest Showtime puff for new series 'Huff'
'Huff' puff
Oct 25, 2004
Showtime is unleashing a multimillion-dollar marketing blitz for its new series "Huff" starring Hank Azaria, advertising on network television for the first time and across cable, print, radio and the Internet in its biggest ever marketing campaign to support an original series.
The unprecedented campaign signals the extent to which Showtime is banking on the success of "Huff," the first project shepherded by Robert Greenblatt since he took over as president of entertainment at Showtime Networks in September 2003. Showtime brass are so high on "Huff," set to bow Nov. 7, that they gave a second-season pickup in July before the first season had even hit the airwaves.
"We are really so excited about this show, and we're doing more than we've ever done before for any series," said Len Fogge, executive vp creative and marketing at Showtime Networks.
"We really believe in the mainstream appeal of this show and a network audience is going to be perfect for us," he said, referring to the ads Showtime will be running on its sibling broadcast network CBS every night (except election night, Nov. 2) from Nov. 1 through the premiere.
The ads will run in CBS' most-watched drama series, including "CSI: Miami," "CSI," "Without a Trace," "Joan of Arcadia," and "JAG."
Fogge said Showtime is spending as much as it ever has on a series, with spots running on fellow Viacom-owned cable networks MTV, VH1, Nick at Nite, TV Land and Comedy Central and print ads running in numerous national publications including Entertainment Weekly, Us Weekly, People, InStyle and Vanity Fair.
And in order to get the show sampled, a full pilot episode DVD will be distributed in 1 million subscription copies of Entertainment Weekly. "Huff" features Azaria as Craig Huffstodt, a successful psychiatrist and family man who undergoes a life-altering reawakening after a tragedy occurs with one of his patients.
Banner ads on MSN and eBay, e-mail blasts and an interactive "Huff" Web site that will include episode synopses, video previews, tune-in information, behind-the-scenes bonuses, downloads and message boards will promote the show on the Internet. The campaign also includes local radio and extensive outdoor advertising.
On its own air, Showtime will have aired approximately 2,200 spots for "Huff" from April through to the Nov. 7 premiere.
Showtime is also counting on support from its cable affiliates, including Adelphia, Charter, Comcast, Cox and Time Warner, to co-promote the "Huff" premiere with tune-in ads, radio spots, interviews with Huff talent in customer newsletters, Huff screenings and affiliate incentives.
On the satellite front, DirecTV, EchoStar's Dish Network and Cablevision's Voom will each offer a free preview weekend of the Showtime unlimited package, making the "Huff" premiere available to more than 21 million households.
Showtime also boasts that a major public relations campaign for the series, including screenings for journalists and media influentials, has led to a "mountain" of press and free publicity for the show, including articles in the New York Times, Newsweek, Time and Vogue.
The unprecedented campaign signals the extent to which Showtime is banking on the success of "Huff," the first project shepherded by Robert Greenblatt since he took over as president of entertainment at Showtime Networks in September 2003. Showtime brass are so high on "Huff," set to bow Nov. 7, that they gave a second-season pickup in July before the first season had even hit the airwaves.
"We are really so excited about this show, and we're doing more than we've ever done before for any series," said Len Fogge, executive vp creative and marketing at Showtime Networks.
"We really believe in the mainstream appeal of this show and a network audience is going to be perfect for us," he said, referring to the ads Showtime will be running on its sibling broadcast network CBS every night (except election night, Nov. 2) from Nov. 1 through the premiere.
The ads will run in CBS' most-watched drama series, including "CSI: Miami," "CSI," "Without a Trace," "Joan of Arcadia," and "JAG."
Fogge said Showtime is spending as much as it ever has on a series, with spots running on fellow Viacom-owned cable networks MTV, VH1, Nick at Nite, TV Land and Comedy Central and print ads running in numerous national publications including Entertainment Weekly, Us Weekly, People, InStyle and Vanity Fair.
And in order to get the show sampled, a full pilot episode DVD will be distributed in 1 million subscription copies of Entertainment Weekly. "Huff" features Azaria as Craig Huffstodt, a successful psychiatrist and family man who undergoes a life-altering reawakening after a tragedy occurs with one of his patients.
Banner ads on MSN and eBay, e-mail blasts and an interactive "Huff" Web site that will include episode synopses, video previews, tune-in information, behind-the-scenes bonuses, downloads and message boards will promote the show on the Internet. The campaign also includes local radio and extensive outdoor advertising.
On its own air, Showtime will have aired approximately 2,200 spots for "Huff" from April through to the Nov. 7 premiere.
Showtime is also counting on support from its cable affiliates, including Adelphia, Charter, Comcast, Cox and Time Warner, to co-promote the "Huff" premiere with tune-in ads, radio spots, interviews with Huff talent in customer newsletters, Huff screenings and affiliate incentives.
On the satellite front, DirecTV, EchoStar's Dish Network and Cablevision's Voom will each offer a free preview weekend of the Showtime unlimited package, making the "Huff" premiere available to more than 21 million households.
Showtime also boasts that a major public relations campaign for the series, including screenings for journalists and media influentials, has led to a "mountain" of press and free publicity for the show, including articles in the New York Times, Newsweek, Time and Vogue.
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