TV Commercials Are getting Longer, louder, and useless. . .

My wife and I sat through five consecutive commercials in one station break that lasted 5.5 minutes. The amount and length of commercials have become insane and should force the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) to do something about it. This problem is getting worse - not better and only the viewers' complaints will end the nightmare! 

 

A TV viewer asked a newspaper in Florida a question about the increasing length of TV commercials: "Are there guidelines/limits for the amount of commercial time during TV shows?"  The newspaper staffer  answered, "On May 4, 2023, I was watching the movie The Expendables on Spike. From 9:01 to 10:02 PM there were 30 minutes of commercials and 31 minutes of movie."

There are no rules regulating the amount of airtime a television station or network - cable or otherwise - devotes to commercials, according to a FCC spokesperson.

Cable operators can transmit no more than 10.5 minutes of commercial matter per hour during children's programming on weekends. 

In the 1950s and 1960s, the average advertisement's length was one minute. Starting in the early 1970s, the average length shrank to 30 seconds. The 15-second commercial began to appear in the late 1980s.

TV stations are prohibited from boosting the average volume of commercials to levels beyond the programs they accompany. FCC rules for loud TV commercials are based on the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act.

Long commercials/informercials are proven lead generators. With the fragmentation of television channels the media cost of these longer spots decreases and therefore the cost per lead decreases making it viable and attractive for direct response advertisers.

There are many excellent shows to watch on television. I hope the FCC will fix the problem so the American people will continue to enjoy them.




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