In order to start working with Etere Air Sales, it is important to understand what elements make up a schedule:
•Asset: In broadcasting, assets are resources owned by a station, they could be tangible (e.g. tapes, discs,) or intangible (e.g. digital files). In synthesis, an asset is a video file that will be used for transmission.
•Block: A block is made up of a group of segments and identifies a time period in any particular day (morning, lunchtime, afternoon, prime time etc.) and its content (segment types) is typical of the time in which it is scheduled. Blocks generally define the structure of the schedule and they function as templates that are used throughout the scheduling process with a pre-defined content requirement.
•Event: A program of any type destined to go on-air at a specific time; an event is an univocal database item referring to a particular asset scheduled at a specific date and time. Events can be billable (i.e. derives from an order) or not.
•Future days: The period that goes from the end of the current television day onwards (i.e. excluding today). This term is used, for example, to indicate that all scheduled broadcasts of a certain order line will be deleted in future days.
•Line: It is a part of a proposal/order that describes the terms, conditions and costs of broadcasting a specific billable content. A line is mainly composed by the customer data, expiry date, booking space, price lists, requested runs, etc.
•Order: A purchase order is a simplified contract stipulated between the broadcast station and a customer and formed by various lines which outlines the terms, conditions and costs associated to the scheduling -and transmission- of an specific billable content (e.g.: commercials). It's worthy mentioning that orders can be generated either as orders (for which no approval is required) or proposals (which requires an approval).
•Past days: The period that goes from the end of the current television day backwards (i.e. including today). This term is used, for example, to indicate that all scheduled broadcasts of a certain order line will be deleted in past days.
•Proposal: A sales proposal is an offer elaborated by the station for a customer regarding the transmission of certain billable content (e.g.: commercials) defined across separated lines that outlines the specific terms, conditions and costs associated to it.
•Rollover time: It is a parameter (set under Etere Configuration | Settings | Basic | System) that permits to dictate the start time of the station's television day (e.g.: from 06:00:00 to 05:59:59).
•Schedule: An advertising schedule is a group of events, distributed along segments.
•Segment: A segment identifies a time interval of variable duration that contains events of a specific type which defines also the segment type. Segments are grouped into blocks according to station's criteria (e.g.: morning, afternoon and evening).
•Split: Indicates the division of an event (specially commercial events) during a certain time frame into two or more versions (i.e.: networks, regions or markets) with the aim of delivering specific contents to different audiences at the same time.
•Television day: It is the 24-hours interval that starts at a given rollover time, it is used to determine the start of the programming schedule and therefore of the financial day.
NB: A more detailed information on terms used all throughout Etere can be found in the global Glossary chapter.