Fox Nation is taking a side-door into ABC’s audience. Promos for The Vow, the dating series hosted by former Bachelor host Chris Harrison, are expected to run in local ad inventory on ABC stations in roughly a dozen U.S. markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Dallas, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The spots could surface in primetime—including during Grey’s Anatomy—and close with the November 11 premiere date over rose petals. In the promo, Harrison says, “I believe in true love. Always have.”
The legal backdrop
Warner Bros. Television, which produces The Bachelor, sent a September 18 cease-and-desist to Fox News Media, arguing that the promos trade on the franchise’s recognizable imagery. The studio said it had no objection to a Harrison-hosted dating show itself, but objected to marketing built on the franchise. Fox Nation responded on September 24, calling the letter “malicious and vindictive” and framing it as an attempt to restrict a competing dating show.
Fox News declined to make executives available for comment.
Why local inventory is the loophole
National networks rarely clear a rival’s promo. But local stations and cable systems sell their own ad slots—usually about two minutes per hour—and those local avails can be bought directly. That lets a competitor appear on a network’s own air without national approval.
The tactic has history. TNT bought ads during NBC’s E.R. in 2004 to promote Without a Trace. The CW ran promos for The Originals during ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars in 2014. ABC bought early-morning cable inventory on CNN and MSNBC in 2009 to steer viewers to Good Morning America. Even Super Bowl beer exclusivity has been tested through local spots.
What it means for media buyers
- Local avails are a competitive conquesting channel that can target a rival’s viewers on the rival’s own air.
- Rights holders need to monitor local station logs, not just national clearance, for promos that borrow familiar imagery.
- Station groups face a tension between local ad revenue and the network’s programming priorities.
No spend, reach or ratings impact has been disclosed, so this is a distribution and marketing story rather than a viewership data point. But for planners, it is a reminder that competitive separation has holes at the local level—and those holes are buyable.
Source: Variety
