Five-Figure Comcast Contract Promotes Elk Grove in Local TV Markets; Portions of Contract Closed Under Client-Lawyer Privilege

July 3, 2018 |  

Perhaps you have seen one of the television advertisements while watching your favorite program on Comcast Cable or AT&T U-verse in the Sacramento market. 

Documents obtained through a public records request reveal the City of Elk Grove had entered into a contract with Comcast Spotlight, the advertising arm of the largest cable operator in the Sacramento region. The two-month deal, which was for May and June 2018, was for a total of $10,000. 

An invoice for the contract shows for the $10,000 expenditure, the city received 125 spots 30-second spots. Those spots were targeted to viewers in El Dorado, Elk Grove, Folsom, Lodi, Rancho Cordova, and Stockton on both Comcast and AT&T platforms.

Along with the spots, the media buy also included 27,862 impressions on mobile and desktop devises. Readers report viewing the spots ESPN and the reality program Bar Rescue. 

The spot as noted in the invoice was provided by the city. It is not known if the city's marketing staff produced the advertisement or if the work was performed by a contractor.

The ad itself includes several still pictures and action scenes used in other videos produced by the city as part of its ongoing effort to develop the community's fledgling tourist trade. Among the recognizable landmarks in the spot are Strauss Island in the Elk Grove Regional Park, and Old Town. 

The spot was posted to YouTube and can be seen below. While the video presents well on computers and mobile devices, when broadcast over Comcast high definition cable channels and viewed on an HD TV, does not properly conform to the screen and has a grainy appearance suggesting the video was not shot in HD.

Interestingly, a portion of the public records request was withheld from the release citing attorney-client privilege. It is not known if a report on the results of the campaign will be provided during a city council meeting nor if there are future purchases planned.