Using Basketball to Shoot for Ratings

Craig Kilborn’s CBS late-night show won’t premiere till the end of this month, but the buildup to that date begins in earnest Thursday, with the start of CBS’ NCAA basketball tournament coverage. CBS has a difficult time reaching the younger male viewers who tune in for the collegiate playoffs and represent a key component of late-night success. As a result, the former “Daily Show” host will dot the country to generate awareness of his new program, visiting 11 NCAA tournament sites over 17 days. CBS is seeking to maximize local exposure for Kilborn, a one-time ESPN anchor and Montana State basketball player who should be in his element attending local affiliate, sales and promotional events being staged in NCAA tournament cities. CBS also will pepper its coverage with on-air ads for the host, who’ll replace Tom Snyder in the hour after David Letterman starting March 30, the night after the traditionally high-rated NCAA championship game. The lanky host will need to take advantage of whatever assist basketball can provide, going one-on-one with a proven player in the 12:30 a.m. time slot, NBC’s Conan O’Brien.

Can Music Retailers Buck Internet Odds?

The nation’s music retailers will converge on Las Vegas this week with a very real fear that the cards are stacked against them. While album sales were up last year, many of the members of the National Assn. of Recording Merchandisers meeting in the desert city are worried that Internet music distributors--both “legal” ones and pirates--will undermine their future profits. “There is a hunger to talk about it,” says Hilary Rosen, president and chief executive officer of the Recording Industry Assn. of America and one of the convention’s featured speakers. “There’s a lot of fear and trepidation.” How immediate is the threat? Tom Petty’s new song, “Free Girl Now,” won’t be available at stores until his new album is released April 13, but fans who use the Internet can get it early and for free. The song is now available as a promotion for MP3.com, the popular Web site that allows computer users to download near-CD quality music for a charge. “The retailers want to know how they fit in that new world order,” Rosen said.

Hint of ‘Star Wars’ Mini-Show at ShoWest

More than 4,000 cinema owners from around the world will be at Bally’s Hotel in Las Vegas this week for their annual ShoWest convention, but perhaps the most anticipated event on their agenda will be the new “Star Wars: Episode One--the Phantom Menace.” Although George Lucas’ “prequel” to the “Star Wars” saga won’t debut until May, rumors abound that Lucas and 20th Century Fox will tease the exhibitors with some new footage. There is even speculation that Lucas himself might make a personal appearance on Wednesday night when Fox hosts a “dessert” party for exhibitors. “I can only tell you that we will go to ShoWest looking to have some fun and be a little different,” said Fox distribution chief Tom Sherak. “Ours will be a simple kind of thing--not a big dinner, and we’re not going to have big stars.” But “Star Wars” is only part of this year’s convention, which gets underway today with a luncheon address by Fox studio chief Bill Mechanic. Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Assn. of America, will be on hand Tuesday to give his annual state of the industry address at which he is expected to say that more movie tickets were sold last year than during any other year since the 1950s, and that more money was generated from ticket sales than during any other year in Hollywood history.

--Compiled by Times Staff Writers