# Commercials sneakingly on the rise! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 12, 2000, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/commercials-sneakingly-on-the-rise/32931 "2000-09-12T20:27:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![labdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5fc32e/32.png) [@labdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/labdude)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2000, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/commercials-sneakingly-on-the-rise/32931/21 "2000-09-20T03:04:38Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ponch \* > \*\*sorry, cochese, but commercials and TV broadcasts are a fact of life. Unless you can convince the governing bodies of sports to charge the networks less for the rights to broadcast their very popular product… \*\* Just to start a fight, If the government passed a law requiring less commercial per hour the sport association would have to accept less money or non at all. In another thread someone from england stated that commercial during sports were tightly government regulated to prevent them from interfering with the game. side note… There are a few things you can do about commercials Buy a tv with a “commercial skip” option. When you press the commercial zap button the screen blanks out or changes channels for 2 minutes. Buy a tv with “steady volume.” This prevents the loud screaming commercials. Buy a VCR with “commercial skip.” When you play the tape it fast forwards through the commercials. Watch non-commercial channels like CSPAN (book tv), Link, Free Speach TV, NASA, etc… ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2000, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/commercials-sneakingly-on-the-rise/32931/22 "2000-09-20T08:07:31Z")
Holy crap. Just found this on the web, and it might deserve its own thread: [Olympics ban guns, knives — and Pepsi](http://www.washtimes.com/sports/default-2000919215945.htm) Excerpt: > [@](#): > > At these games, it’s Coke, no Pepsi. > > Olympic officials have added the popular soda to the list of “dangerous” items banned from the main Olympic Park venue at the Sydney Games. > > Security guards ask fans attending events if they are carrying “knives, weapons or cans of Pepsi” in an attempt to appease one of the Olympics’ official sponsors, Coca-Cola. Those who refuse to surrender their cans or bottles of Pepsi are denied entry. > > “Non-game sponsor products are not allowed. That’s why sponsors pay huge amounts of money. Coca-Cola is the official sponsor, and only their drinks are allowed,” a spokesman for the organizing committee said. ---
**Author:** ![BillyBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/34f0e0/32.png) [@BillyBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BillyBoy)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2000, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/commercials-sneakingly-on-the-rise/32931/23 "2000-09-20T16:44:21Z")
> [@](#): > > There are a few things you can do about commercials Unfortunately, with the latest commercial “innovations” there isn’t all that much you can do… for example: > [@](#): > > Buy a tv with a “commercial skip” option. When you press the commercial zap button the screen blanks out or changes channels for 2 minutes. Kind of a neat idea, but rendered harmless by the half-screen credits/commercial configuration. Even if it blanked out the commercials, you would have a half screen of credits and a half screen of blank. > [@](#): > > Buy a VCR with “commercial skip.” When you play the tape it fast forwards through the commercials. Again, the idea is nifty, but won’t work for the half-screeners. > [@](#): > > Watch non-commercial channels like CSPAN (book tv), Link, Free Speach TV, NASA, etc… These look suspiciously like channels that might cause me to learn while I am watching TV. Shame on you for suggesting such a thing. I’d say I’ll track you down, but years of sitting in front of the tube have shortened my attention span to the point where I can’t really put any weight behind a threat like that unless you live within 2 blocks of my house. ---
**Author:** ![JSexton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@JSexton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JSexton)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2000, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/commercials-sneakingly-on-the-rise/32931/24 "2000-09-20T17:24:52Z")
I was watching gymnastics last night, and one of the girls performing was under pressure to change her music for her floor routine. Why? Well, turn’s out that music has been used by Quantas (sp?) airline in an ad. Quantas isn’t the offical airline sponsor. The airline who is the sponsor tried to force her to pick new music. WTF? The song didn’t have a Quantas jingle, fer cryin’ out loud! Max Headroom isn’t too far away, folks. ---
**Author:** ![Jester](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jester/32/8223_2.png) [@Jester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jester)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2000, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/commercials-sneakingly-on-the-rise/32931/25 "2000-09-20T17:59:33Z")
I think that by far, the worst part is when you’re watching a football or baseball game, and there’s a five minute commercial break, followed by ONE FRIGGIN PLAY, and then ANOTHER goddam break! WTF? Most of the time, it’s the SAME commercials as in the first break, too! Do advertisers THINK that this will make people LIKE them? Are network execs THAT desperate for quick cash? Also, to hijack slightly, radio is even worse. I’ve found that I can’t even listen to the “modern hits” station anymore, because, literally, every time I tune to it there’s a commercial. These ads go for about 10 minutes, then the station plays ONE song! And to make matters worse, they’ll play a song from the EIGHTIES, after saying that they only play “today’s hit music.” Then, more ads. And on, and on, and on. [/hijack] [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/commercials-sneakingly-on-the-rise/32931.md?page=1)