Videoage International March/April 2021

4 World March/April 2021 V I D E O A G E Airtime for each episode was sold on a barter basis at $125,000 per national minute ($560,000 in today’s money) by Syndicast Services. It’s an interesting twist of fate that it was a Briton who stirred up controversy with the Nixon interview, while 44 years later it was an American to do the same with a member of the British royal family. And both interviews ended up being owned by CBS. The special, Oprah with Meghan and Harry , was first broadcast on primetime in the U.S. on the CBS TV network and was available on the U.S. CBS App 30 days after its original broadcast. It was rebroadcast on the CBS TV network during primetime five days later on March 12. For its first telecast, the network and local affiliates sold some 30 minutes of airtime for a record $325,000 for a 30-second network spot (twice the normal rate), generating an estimated $15.5 million, plus an additional $4 million from international sales (of which Winfrey reportedly got a cut). According to the Daily Mail , the U.K.’s ITV bought the rights for the equivalent of U.S.$1.39 million. (Frost was behind the launch of ITV in 1983.) It is also estimated that Canada’s Global TV paid $400,000, and Italy’s Sky paid $80,000. ViacomCBS Global Distribu- tion Group licensed the special in more than 100 markets worldwide and to the American Forces Network. It has been picked up by M-Net in Sub- Saharan Africa, VRT for Eén in Belgium, RTL in Germany, Siminn in Iceland, RTÉ in Ireland, yesDocu in Israel, Net5 in the Netherlands, Discovery NZ/Three in New Zealand, TV3 and Viafree in the Nordics, and SRF in Switzerland, among others. Frost’s interview with Nixon was also distributed on home video and international TV. It later became the subject of a play (in 2006), then a theatrical movie (in 2008). Will viewers soon see a behind-the-scenes theatrical rendition of Oprah with Meghan and Harry as well? Winfrey reportedly re- corded a total of three hours with Meghan and Harry, of which only 90 minutes were broadcast, leaving some addi- tional 90 original minutes for further exploitation. O ver 17 million U.S. TV viewers tuned in to CBS on March 7 to watch Oprah Winfrey interviewMeghan Markle and Prince Harry about their departure from the British royal family. CBS reportedly paid around $9 million to Oprah’s Harpo Productions for the two-hour special, for broadcast on the CBS TV network and international rights, which makes it the most expensive talk show special in history — but not the most watched. That distinction goes to a 1977 David Frost (1939-2013) interview with former U.S. president Richard Nixon (1913-1994), which garnered 45 million U.S. TV viewers in its first 90-minute telecast. For the four-episode talk show, Frost paidNixon $600,000 (equivalent to $2.5 million in today’s money), plus 20 percent of the profit. The show was broadcast in syndication in 150 U.S. TV markets (covering 92 percent of U.S. TVHH) because at the time none of the U.S. networks wanted to be associated with “checkbook journalism.” Despite that, CBS did ultimately acquire the rights to Frost’s 12 Nixon interviews. According to press reports from the era, Frost netted $1 million out of the venture. Oprah with Meghan and Harry in $ and ¢ (Continued on Page 6) MARCH 2021 JUNIOR PAGE_ 7.284”x 9.055” VIDEO AGE JR. PAGE GRB Studios www. g r b t v . c om l s a l e s @ g r b t v. c om D I G I T A L M I P T V 2 0 2 1 Genre: Crime Duration: 257 X 60’ Genre: Health Duration: 150 X 60’ Genre: Documentary Duration: 8 X 60’ Genre: Paranormal Duration: 20 X 60’ NEW SEASON NEW S E R I E S FORMAT AVAILABLE NEW SEASON