Next time you use your digital video recorder to tape your favorite MTV (VIA) show, think twice before fast-forwarding through the commercials—they may be more entertaining than The Real World episode you recorded.

That is because MTV is among the networks now trying to reach the audience by championing a blend of entertainment and commercials called podbusting. Podbusting commercials are ads that are packaged like mini-shows; they sell a product but also entertain.  The name that refers to the industry term for television commercials, which are divided into "pods," with each commercial encompassing a pod, according to Todd Juenger, vice president and general manager of audience research and measurement at TiVo, in El Viso, Calif. While the networks were once primarily concerned with the quality of show content, they are “now being held accountable for the audience during commercial breaks” and therefore, says Juenger, must “reconfigure those commercial pods to hold onto the audience better.” 

TV programmers and advertisers are battling two different ways audiences tune out during commercials: channel surfing and fast forwarding on their digital video recorders (DVR), like  TiVo. Channel surfers are effectively lost if they click away from a show, but if the advertisement is part of an ongoing story, such as the recent 12 weeks of connected minute-long narratives from the clothing retailer American Eagle (AEO) that ran during The Real World, they can be lured to stick around during the commercial break. Likewise those who fast forward with their DVR might be encouraged to stop fast forwarding and press “play” again. As a result, new types of commercials are appearing in response to how television viewers are using technology.

Podbusting commercials can be any length of time and can be shown at the beginning, middle or end of a commercial break, says Juenger.   One example would be Dove’s (UL) “Fresh Takes”, a micro-series about three city dwelling women in their 20s, which corresponded with the promotion of Dove Go Fresh body washes and moisturizers.  The series starred singer/actress Alicia Keys and three-minute-long installments played on MTV during commercial breaks for the show, The Hills, for five weeks beginning March 24.

MTV has podbusted other ways during the past year and half, says John Shea, executive vice president of integrated marketing and brand partnership for MTV music groups, which includes MTV, MTV2, VH1, CMT and LOGO. One way, he explains, is stand alone commercials, like a three-and-a-half minute piece or “mini movie” for Target (TGT)  that featured an interview with a young designer, and appeared during an episode of The Hills. Another way to podbust is to run several stand alone pieces, which are linked by theme but not connected to each other by any narrative, such as several spots from Dove (UN) which ran during The Hills. 

Juenger gave another example of how podbusting on NBC (GE) got him and his wife to stick around during the commercial breaks during 30 Rock: they see actress Tina Fey on screen in what looks like a show but it’s an American Express (AXP) commercial. “My wife and I laugh because they fool us every time,” he says.

Podbusting is a sign advertisers are becoming more aggressive about outreach, says Shea. “The audience has grown up with the lines between commercials and culture blurred,” he says. “They kind of think of everything as content.”