VH1 Classic: Tunes for Boomers

Cable World, May 1, 2000 by Rani Long

First there was MTV. Then for those who "grew out of" MTV, VH1 appeared.

Next week at the NCTA convention in New Orleans, VH1 will launch another channel for Baby Boomers: VH1 Classic. The new digital channel will include music from the `60s, `70s and `80s, including early MTV artists. It is targeted at adults over 35.

"The response has been incredible," says VH1 president John Sykes, about consumer beta research testing. "This isn't about looking to build shelf space with another digital service," Sykes said. "Six or seven years ago there wouldn't have been a need for VH1 Classic, but now you have 65 million Baby Boomers who have no musical destination on television. This is an audience raised on an incredibly diverse mix of music."

Another benefit of catering to this age group is that they are the fastest-growing group of Web users. "Perfect candidates," says Sykes, "for broadband cable content."

VH1 also is launching an on-air and on-line marketing campaign, VH1 Music Fast, designed to help generate sales of operators' high-speed broadband services. Cable operators will be provided with the marketing tools to launch local acquisition campaigns.

Jessica Heacock, VP-consumer and affiliate marketing at VH1 says, the content "helps to drive their business ... What we've found is that the MSOs are each different in their approach to broadband. One of the key benefits of this campaign is that it's flexible, it can be fully customized. And the on-air spots will stress to consumers the importance of high-speed Internet access."