the next Trek TV series preview discussion

[Tom]

Any new star trek series must stay true to gene rodenberrys original vision. To stray from this would be unexceptable to any trek fan

But dare i say, is Roddenberry's vision still consistant with today's society? An optimistic view is great, dont get me wrong, but does is make for succesful entertainment these days?

 

[Dukhat]

Any new star trek series must stay true to gene rodenberrys original vision. To stray from this would be unexceptable to any trek fan

Kinda presumptuous of you to speak for all Trek fans, eh?

 

[Sindatur]

Any new star trek series must stay true to gene rodenberrys original vision. To stray from this would be unexceptable to any trek fan

Kinda presumptuous of you to speak for all Trek fans, eh?

And...Who's version of "Gene Roddenberry's Original Vision" (GROV) are we bound to, to judge if it's acceptable to us as Trek Fans? You could start a thread asking "What is Gene Roddenberry's Original Vision" on this very board, and almost every post would have a slightly different answer (some of them drastically different then others).

Some folks love ST09, because it perfectly captured GROV, others thought it didn't but love it anyways, while yet another group detests ST09 because it didn't come anywhere near capturing GROV

 

[jefferiestubes8]

The TV Addict site has an article up this week about pilots being released online before their linear TV premiere and the results.

The Business of Show: Is the Practice of Releasing Pilots Early Online Doing More Harm Than Good?
discussing ABC network and now CBS has done it with their first show.

NBC released the pilot of Revolution online 2 weeks early. and it sparked interest.

There is another article here:

cable networks like HBO, Showtime, Starz and AMC have been offering up the first episode of their series online as a way to potentially lure new subscribers, for the networks, it's become more a question of marketing.

So far the trend in previewing pilots seems to be to remove the episode from the web as we get closer to the premiere date in order to direct people back to watching it on air.

Is The Best Way To Market a New Series To Let People See It Early Online?

Other shows have done a lot more like NBC's Smash pilot:

NBC is exhibiting the Smash series pilot during consumer screenings in 10 major markets on January 9 in Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Portland and San Francisco. In Chicago, NBC will have some of the cast and creative team on hand for a Q-n-A after the screening followed by a reception.

From January 15-30, selected American Airlines flights will show in-flight screenings of the pilot.

It is being offered to digital download platforms including Apple iTunes, Amazon Video on Demand, Xbox/Zune, Playstation, Samsung MediaHub and Vudu beginning January 16 through February 6.

From January 16 through February 6, Video on Demand partners, including parent company Comcast, will offer the pilot via Set-Top-Box On Demand.
Beginning January 23 through February 6, online streaming via NBC.com and Hulu.

the Hollywood Reporter mentioned

one well-placed source pegs the spend at about $22 million -- double what premium cable networks typically allocate to promote a new series -- NBC Entertainment marketing president Len Fogge, who followed Greenblatt from Showtime, vehemently refutes that figure, placing it at less than $10 million.

The pros vs cons.
positive word of mouth vs low ratings on a linear tv channel.
With the idea that a Star Trek show could live not on a linear channel due to its fanbase and the discussion on this thread
Would it really matter if the next Trek series were on linear TV?
and Netflix releasing House of Cards entire season at once changes the game and this new way of watching TV and promoting a new series even on linear TV by releasing the pilot early as a preview may become commonplace for networks and cable TV in 2 years.

The idea of

From January 15-30, selected American Airlines flights will show in-flight screenings of the pilot.

would work for Trek if CBS could pick one major airline. This is really an idea way to get many audiences interested as a domestic cross country flight has a captive audience. The buzz would build.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Maybe that's a bad idea for network TV, but releasing episodes at the same time has paid off for Netflix, because viewers appreciate the idea of being in control of their own viewing, regardless of whether they "binge" or drag it out so long like me, that I still haven't seen the final episode. They may have given up something in terms of ongoing PR value of word of mouth, but much of the PR they got was, how much viewers like the new system.

Star Trek isn't going to be on network TV unless it's in conjunction with being on streaming as well (like CBS is doing with Amazon for the Under the Dome launch) so the follies of network marketing are a moot point. Their business model is doomed anyway for anything interesting, they'll have news, sports, reality shows and the lowest-common denomenator programming.

You could use airlines to build PR about a new show, or you could put a trailer on appropriate movies (such as the ones with Star Trek in their name). But the quickest and most direct route is to put the show on streaming and then do a targetted ad campaign that offers a free trial period and a whole season's worth of a new Star Trek series at once.

Tell me that wouldn't get a huge response. Online advertising is cheap, and the value of getting one new subscriber is much larger than the value of getting one new ad-watcher on network TV, so even if most of the try-outs don't convert to new subscribers, it would still be valuable. Plus, it makes the service "stickier" for existing subscribers.