1946: The first television show to have a commercial sponsor debuts. The show does not last long. TV commercials will.
The Federal Radio Commission (later renamed the Federal Communications Commission) started issuing television licenses in 1928. These noncommercial licenses did not allow selling airtime or any other commercial use, but a few stations had begun airing advertisements nonetheless.
The FCC began granting commercial TV licenses in May 1941. NBC’s New York City station, WNBT-TV (now WNBC-TV), which had the first such license, ran the first official TV commercial on its first day of commercial operation, July 1, 1941.
During a baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies, an image of a Bulova clock appeared with a map of the United States. The announcer intoned: “America runs on Bulova time.” The ad lasted 10 seconds, and Bulova paid $9 (about $134 in today’s money). The audience for that ad numbered […]
Original post by Randy Alfred
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