Remote Free TV!

Just when you thought the media infiltration in America couldn't get any worse...it has. SURPRISE! According to the Washington Post, a study has found that the shorter network commercial breaks are, the more apt we are to keep watching. DUH! Like a six year old couldn't have told you that? This revolutionary discovery was made by media buyer Magna in looking at early returns on Fox's new genre drama "Fringe."
Fox executives cut commercial time during the show to 1 minute 18 seconds compared to the average break of 3 minutes 30 seconds. This means that viewers are getting 84% show compared to the prior 70% show. Fox has now dubbed this strategy "Remote Free TV" because they believe that with shorter commercials viewers have less reason to touch the remote to change channels.
And it seems as though they're right. Magna's studies show that 88% of Fox's viewers sit through commercial breaks while 92% of viewers for "Fringe" sit through them. This is giving the station higher ratings and more money. And it's not just that, with shorter commercial breaks that bring in more viewers the good ole boob tube is going to be controlling our lives even more.
I must admit though, that at a time when our economy is failing I'm not surprised to see networks going to such measures to stay afloat...I actually think my heart may be warming for them a little bit...NAH! Who am I kidding?