From Observer.com:
But increasingly local broadcast TV stations are struggling to come up with the money needed to pay hefty syndication fees.
In the months and years to come, whenever big programs like The Oprah Winfrey Show sit down to renegotiate their deals with local, broadcast stations they are likely to find a grim market where station-group managers are unable or unwilling to match the fees of yesteryear, let alone increase them.
That leaves two options for the likes of Oprah. Lower your fees. Or pack up shop.
The multiverse continues to grow. This move signals a further devaluation of local broadcast media. The line between big network and cable network continues to be blurred, and the line between online only network and cable nets will also blur.
So how does Oprah moving away from local TV affiliates effect me and you as indie media makers?
Well, for one thing, it puts us into further competition with Oprah for eyeballs and attention. Oprah is probably the single best self-marketer in the history of humanity. She’s come from less than nothing to become one of the richest and famous-est people in the world, and now she’s going to be using that fame and money to build up a new media empire.
All of the same leverages that have been available to us, ownership, control, and distribution, will be available to her, and you had better believe a ton of brand dollars will flow to her.
And that’s a good thing. It means that if you, tiny little indie media person, can build up your brand and attention, you’ll be able to get some future brand dollars flowing to you. Once money is flowing into the space it’s hard to get it to flow to other spaces.
But Kent, you ask in an earnest tone, I don’t have a cable network like Oprah does, how will I compete with her?
Well, you won’t directly, but as eyeballs and dollars flow away from broadcast down the hill to cable, and cable eyeballs peel off into the net, you’ll see an overall growth in the the net sector.
It will be a slower process than any of us would like, but it will continue to happen.
These last three years in Hollywood has been like when your grandma picked up the rug at one end and just shook it all out and then beat the crap out of it. A lot of violent unsettling of dust and old crusts of bread have been loosed and taken out, and though the pets and children may be confused, it’s ultimately for the best.
It’s always been hard to make it in the entertainment industry, now you’re just at the mercy of you audience, not some gatekeeper. The gatekeeper was strict, but offered some level of security and hope that you could make your lot in life if you just kept the gatekeeper happy. The audience may indeed be fickle, but once they are your fan, they are your fans, and it’s hard to lose them if you treat them well.
And if there’s one thing that Oprah can teach us all — be good to your fans and they will be good to you.
