THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 28, 1995 TAG: 9510280296
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PATTI BOND, COX NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: ATLANTA LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
The nastier the weather, the brighter the forecast for the Weather Channel.
The Marietta-based cable TV channel, whose livelihood depends on part-time viewers, watched ratings soar this hurricane season as record numbers of viewers tracked the storms.
The day before Hurricane Opal made its Florida landfall earlier this month, an average of 480,000 households tuned in during a 24-hour period - more than 2 1/2 times the normal 24-hour average.
And 1.3 million households watched as Hurricane Erin ripped through the Caribbean in August, drawing a record 1.9 rating for the channel during prime time.
Bruce Humbert, senior manager of marketing research for the Weather Channel, said hurricanes typically lure viewers over a five-day period, beginning two days before landfall. Viewership peaks around landfall, then tapers off two days afterward. The Atlantic hurricane season ends Nov. 30.
Now ranked fourth among cable TV channels in weekly viewership, the cable channel has far surpassed the cloudy outlook that skeptics gave it when its parent company, Landmark Communications Inc. of Norfolk, launched it in 1982. Landmark owns The Virginian-Pilot.
``When we first started, a lot of people criticized us,'' said Ellen Turner, the channel's senior vice president of marketing. ``They said the only people who would advertise would be galoshes and raincoat companies.''
The first couple of years were tough, but the channel soon became a staple for cable TV viewers. Now, with more than $100 million in total annual revenue, the Weather Channel has enjoyed advertising growth in the double digits every year, Turner said.
``We've learned what works for us,'' Turner said. ``Now we just have to refine and enhance it.'' Some of the enhancements will come in the form of improved local forecasts and longer programs, such as weather-related documentaries.
While turbulent weather always brings in new viewers, the Weather Channel has developed a loyal following of regular watchers. And it continues to introduce a variety of new products for hard-core weather enthusiasts.
Around Christmas, look for ``Everything Weather,'' a CD-ROM almanac with graphics that will allow users to track storms. Storm tracking is already popular on the channel's CompuServe forum, which had up to 500,000 visits during Hurricane Erin, Turner said.
The channel's forecasts also are available on its radio network, which is carried by 120 stations, and the Weather Channel Connection, one of AT&T's top 900 phone services. Next year, the Weather Channel will launch a major advertising campaign on other cable TV stations, Turner said.
Regardless of expansion plans, the Weather Channel will stick to what it does best, Turner said.
``Our vision remains the same,'' she said. ``Our job for the future is keeping our loyal fans happy and getting the weather `samplers' to become regulars.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photos by Lawrence Jackson, The Virginian-Pilot and
Reuters
KEYWORDS: LANDMARK COMMUNICATIONS INC. by CNB