Convergence, increased competition in the distribution of broadcasting services and the launch of new direct-to-home satellite television services have Rogers Cablesystems taking the offensive with its first-ever image advertising campaign.
The cable service is positioning itself as the company for yesterday, today and tomorrow.
Rogers received its first cable licence in 1967 and now operates in Toronto, Ottawa, Kitchener, Waterloo and London, Ont. as well as a large part of Vancouver.
Jan Innes, vice-president of communications for Rogers Communications, says the campaign was intentionally timed to coincide with the entry into the marketplace of direct-to-home satellite services.
In light of a recent announcement by broadcast regulator Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission which opens the door to new distributors of broadcasting services, the campaign also gives Rogers a chance to solidify its position in the marketplace.
The new crtc policy goes into effect at the beginning of 1998. It is meant to encourage better service and the development of new product offerings but will also result in price competition.
Consumers will get to choose their supplier of broadcasting services from among competing distributors and will also have the option of purchasing their own inside cable wiring.
For the time being, the crtc will continue to regulate the basic cable service fee but not the subscriber fees of new companies coming into the market.
Innes says Rogers is still studying the 85-page document and is not prepared yet to make a comment on the policy.
The Rogers advertising campaign, in addition to highlighting what the company provides in the way of cable television services, marks the first time it has widely advertised its Rogers Wave high-speed Internet access cable modem.
Availability is becoming more widespread as Rogers is rolling out its Wave service to about 100,000 homes a month in Metro Toronto.
Rogers plans on running a modest trial of a digital cable service starting this fall, says Innes, adding that the service will offer digital quality sound, picture and a greater variety of channels. She expects it to be ready for a widespread audience in 1998.
As well, the company plans on rolling out its Impulse Pay-Per-View service where a user doesn’t have to call up a service rep to order a movie. ‘You can do it by pushing a button on your remote, then it’s charged to your account.’
Comprising four 30-sec. tv spots and four 30-sec. radio ads and created by Garneau Wurstlin Philp of Toronto, the new campaign will run in Toronto, Kitchener, London and Ottawa for the next six weeks.
The effort will be followed by product advertising from Rogers Cable’s primary agency, Enterprise Advertising of Toronto.
The television commercials feature a montage of classic and contemporary programs, news clips of famous events and scenes of family life.
A Twilight Zone-styled voice-over talks of an imaginary Television Land, brought to you all these years by Rogers, as well as the potential of what Rogers can deliver in the future.
Three executions deal with the television component of the company’s service, while the fourth spot features the Wave high-speed Internet access cable modem, calling it ‘TV for your fingers.’
Each spot ends with the tag line, ‘You’re not going to miss all this, are you?’
