Bill Abbott has a job that some might find enviable. As president and chief executive of Crown Media Family Networks, he watches television — a lot of television. Crown Media Family Networks is the owner and operator of cable stations the Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel. Not only does Abbott keep an eye on what his own networks broadcast, but he also watches what competitors are showing. Getting a break from the tube every once in a while wouldn’t be a bad thing, he says. “I think a good vacation would be to go where there is no TV,” Abbott said, from his office in Studio City. Abbott spends much of his time at Crown’s offices in New York and travels to Los Angeles every third week. He has been with the company since 2000 and took on his current titles in June 2009. His prior work experience includes Fox Family Worldwide, CBS Radio Networks, Seltel, Inc. and Nadler & Larimer Advertising. In his current role, Abbott oversaw the introduction of a key part of Crown’s strategy of producing original content— a mid-day lifestyle block anchored by home crafts and cooking maven Martha Stewart, which started in September 2010. The Hallmark Channel reaches 88 million homes and the Hallmark Movie Channel had 42 million subscribers as of June 30. In the second quarter, Crown Media reaped revenues of $76.2 million, a 16 percent increase from the $65.7 million in revenues it brought in from the second quarter of 2010. Question: How would you characterize the position of the Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel in the cable industry? Answer: We lead with our brand. The great thing about our brand is that it needs no introduction. A hundred year heritage of stores, retail outlets and helping people celebrate different occasions in life. It is part of Americana. Then you have the 60-plus year heritage of television, which is a little bit under the radar in terms of when you think about Hallmark. But Hallmark Hall of Fame being that powerful, award-winning, quality series of movies that gives Hallmark the latitude to play so effectively in the television space. Of the 100-plus cable networks out there a vast majority is trying to go younger, edgier, be more on that cutting edge. Whereas, we know who we are, (and) our brand is very family friendly. We are targeting that audience and doing it unabashedly. That is one of the ways we differentiate ourselves. Then you have the secondary attributes around our production of original movies and our ability to produce award-winning lifestyle content in our partnership with Martha Stewart and all of the things that means to our viewers, our advertisers and our distribution partners. Q: Speaking of the lifestyle block, is that in the position where you wanted that to be by now? A: We knew going in that it would take a while to build, and in a crowded environment it takes time for viewers to really find you. We could not be happier with the quality of the production and more proud of the investment we have made in Martha Stewart and her stable of stars that have also branched out. That’s a tremendous commitment to original programming that separates us from the crowd, especially daytime in cable. I think we’re the only producer of original fresh product at this time for daytime in the cable landscape. Q: Is there anything you could have done differently in launching the lifestyle block? A: No. You look at the track record of Martha, and her brand marries so well with ours — around celebration and connection and helping people experience life in the best possible way. I think we feel really good about everything from the launch to where we are today to being excited about season seven where Emeril Lagasse will be joining the party, so to speak. Q: How would you describe your management style? A: I definitely have a strong point of view on the cable business and the action of the family-friendly space in cable for nearly 25 years. I believe I have a very good feel for the genre which leads me to, I think, hire people who have strong cable experience and understand the marketplace and understand the challenges we face as two independent cable networks. Overall, I am much more management by consensus than by dictatorship. As much as I have a lot of experience, I value those who have other experiences and work on the team. I like to empower people. I like people to feel supported and feel good about where they come to work every day. We have good environment where people learn, where people move their careers forward, where they believe in what we’re doing. They feel like they are being mentored and there is a responsibility from management on down to people’s growth and development. Q: Does the management by consensus come from past jobs that you have had and other managers you have worked for? A: I think sometimes you learn more from bad bosses than you do from good bosses, although I have learned a lot from good bosses over the years, as well. Certainly, you know, nobody knows it all and I think it’s important to have a team pulling in the same direction. If there is disagreement, that is great, too. But at the end of the day, everybody gets on board and supports what the group thinking is. Q: You split your time between here and New York. So which city do you prefer? A: I am a born and bred New Yorker. Certainly there are advantages to coming here, especially in January, February. But I love the pace and environment of New York and the activity. Q: What are some common misconceptions New Yorkers have about Los Angeles? A: I think New Yorkers have a pretty good feeling for Los Angeles. A lot of the stereotypes are that way for a reason. At the end of the day, probably there is not enough credit given to how smart people are out here. Behind a lot of the pomp and circumstance that is Los Angeles — the fancy cars and limousines — behind that there are a lot of smart people, who not only get this business but get the overall economic climate. There are many ways to be successful, and just because it’s a little bit more of a laid back style out here doesn’t mean that people are any less sharp. Q: What are some of the common misconceptions those in Los Angeles have about New York? A: That is pretty right on, too. You know, (pause), I think probably not enough credit is given from either side as to how difficult both cities are to be successful in and navigate through. They both have enormous challenges that are a little bit under the radar. The commuting circumstances in both places are extremely difficult. I think New Yorkers look at L.A. and they think, ‘Well, you live by the beach, you work 10 minutes away and it’s easy.’ People in L.A. look at New York and don’t understand getting to work every day is such a fight. So overall the perceptions are fairly accurate. Q: What are some patterns or trends that you are seeing in the cable industry? A: Cable has been on a 20 year roll, and cable is a great business. You have the dual revenue streams of affiliate fees and advertising fees. What that has created is a successful momentum that has bred success year after year. That just continues with better investment in original product, and better marketing campaigns and overall growth of brands. You look at some of these networks that five years ago were very much under the radar and underdeveloped that have just taken off and are now the juggernauts of the cable business— networks like Bravo and History (Channel) and others. In terms of overall trends, there is not only more competition, but there is better competition and that competition is such an additive in quantity and quality. The other big trends are the digital extensions that networks are developing around their platforms. How that plays out over time will be interesting to watch. Arguably, that is one of the greatest threats to the golden goose. The music business learned the hard way. Not wanting to compare the two, we wouldn’t want to see 5, 10, or 15 percent of our bottom line go out the back door because our content is not being monetized in the right way. Cable has to be very sensitive to capitalizing and monetizing those additional digital streams and not giving away the store. Q: What has the Hallmark channels done with extending its digital platform. A: We have intentionally not played a big role yet in terms of developing our presence in a way that would put our core business in jeopardy. We are taking a wait-and-see approach. We are certainly developing with an eye toward playing (content) on multiple platforms. We are doing some different things that will allow us to take advantage of what we have to offer digitally but (also) what Hallmark Cards has to offer digitally. I think that is a very powerful and big potential story within what we are doing. Q: You named Bob Wright, the former chairman of NBC Universal, as your most admired person. Why did you choose him? A: Not only did we go to the same college and high school in Massachusetts, (but) he is one of the pioneers of cable in many ways — in terms of developing the NBC franchise in the cable business. He is a remarkably smart, strategic person overall, in terms of where he took those different cable networks and hired great people and let them do their jobs effectively. On the personal side, you look at everything he has done with Autism Speaks and the commitment to battling that dreaded disease. That is something that is noteworthy. Q: Do you set aside time to watch particular TV programs? A: I do. My appointment viewing is as much in the news and sports area that the demographic I fall into would lead you to think. So certainly news and sports are where I end up a lot, but certainly I watch “American Idol” and all the key broadcast shows, as well as keeping on top of what our competitors are doing. It is important part of my job … (to) go home to watch TV and understand what the different network strategies are and get a sense of what their brands are trying to achieve. Q: Any particular favorite shows you have on the Hallmark Channel or anything the network has done? A: Certainly, the Martha Stewart block is something we’re proud of. The amount of original content we have in that block — we did over 350 hours this past year, which is more than USA, TNT and TBS in original content. That is something I think is great television. I am a fan of off-network sitcoms, “I Love Lucy,” “Cheers,” and “Frazier,” especially. I am a fan of that product and the original movies on the Hallmark Hall of Fame, too. Q: What were some of your favorite television shows when growing up? A: It would fall into the sitcoms, “I Love Lucy,” “I Dream of Jeannie” —shows like that. The era we grew up in there were three broadcast networks and two or three independent stations in the market. So you’d catch as much sports as was available on those stations on the weekends and then it would be syndicated fare. There was not a lot out there to watch when growing up. I don’t know if I have on favorite I would identify.
Cable Guy
