The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) through ABC and ESPN have made a deal with Cox Communications to offer their sports and broadcast hits on demand. What's different about the deal is there's a condition included that forbids the cable operator from enabling the fast-forward feature so that viewers can bypass ads.
This only applies to Cox video-on-demand menu so it won't interfere with regular DVR usage.
Cox customers will have access to broadcast shows 12 hours after they've been seen on ABC beginning in the fall. ESPN is also adding college football games to the mix.
Another aspect of the deal will include an experiment that will test the technology that is being used to place ads that are based upon zip codes or specific local or regional areas. That will roll out in Orange County, California, where Cox has about 
a quarter million subscribers.
The duo will change the commercials every few days so they won't grow ineffective.
What this does is provide customers the convenience of on demand, but with the inclusion of the ads along with it. Disney is hoping it will be a good alternative to DVRs.
This could also make it easier to sell advertising for on demand shows as in the past it hasn't caught on with agencies.
Citing the Wall Street Journal, Marketwatch quoted Anne Sweeney, president of the Disney-ABC Television Group, saying: "Advertising is critical to the financial health of our business and this agreement marks the first time one of our cable-operator partners is acknowledging that."
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