BMW chief slams quality of TV schedules

BMW marketing director Phil Horton is to attack broadcasters for delivering “average, inferior or downright inane programmes” as well as advertisers and their creative agencies for a decline in the quality of advertising in a speech at the TV United 2003 conference in Bath today (Wednesday).

He questions whether the decline in the quality of television advertising is responsible for “low ad attention, zapping and wallpaper breaks”.

Horton says: “We all share some of the blame for the current limbo that commercial TV finds itself in.”

As a marketer at a car company that spends &£11.5m a year on TV advertising in the UK, Horton is particularly keen to see ABC1-rich, peak-time weekday and weekend programmes on all the major channels, including the BBC, which he believes helps to drive programme standards generally.

Horton will conclude by issuing a rallying call to broadcasters and advertisers alike to “invest more time, more intellect, more creative energy and more money” in their respective programmes and ads.

The conference, he hopes, will act as a catalyst for the industry to act together to promote TV to advertisers which, over recent years, have diverted spend to other media.

TV United 2003, page 14