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Inbroadcasting, acommercial bumper,ident bumper, orbreak-bumper (often shortened tobump) is a brief announcement, usually two to fifteen seconds in length that can contain avoice over, placed between a pause in the program and itscommercial break, and vice versa. The host, the program announcer, or acontinuity announcer states the title (if any) of the presentation, the name of the program, and thebroadcast orcable network, though not necessarily in that order. On children's television networks, they are sometimes calledexternal eyecatches due to the resemblance ofinternal eyecatches inanime and there is usually no voice over, but some bumpers do feature one.Bumper music, often a recurringsignature ortheme music segment, is nearly always featured. Bumpers can vary from simple text toshort films.
Since 1976, most networktelevision programs in theUnited States no longer use commercial bumpers; although somesoap operas such asDays of Our Lives (which stopped using one in 2010) andThe Young and the Restless, as well as thegame showThe Price Is Right, still feature mid-show bumpers. Commercial bumpers are still a common feature ofradio. In radio, they are often used during sports broadcasts to ease the transition fromplay by play to commercial break and back tolive action, as well as notify local stations that they should insert theirstation identification and/or commercials, many times using obscure musical selections of theboard operator's choosing. One example of commercial bumpers still in use[when?] can be found onCartoon Network's late night programming block,Adult Swim, whose extensive usage of bumpers has even spawned its own website.[1] Another example of commercial bumpers in radio would be their use insyndicated programming; for instance, the radio countdown programsAmerican Top 40 andAmerican Country Countdown feature a series of pre-recorded jingles and other outcues to transition to and from commercial breaks.
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, in accordance with then-current regulations set by theFederal Communications Commission that required a distinction between programs and commercials, most children's programming bumpers would include the phrase "We'll be [right] back after these messages" (or variations of it), except for the bump before the final commercial break, which would usually say, "And now, these messages" (or variations of this phrase). The FCC significantly relaxed these rules in 1984, although to this day some networks still air these bumpers, particularly during programming that airs Sunday nights at 7 PM/6 PM Central that is not a news or information program such as60 Minutes.[2] Another common bumper phrase was "And now, a word from our sponsor."
Bumpers also had a technical reason for existence: Early videotape machines took several seconds to start playing video in proper synchronization with the program source. The board operator would cue the tape with a "preroll" of several seconds then use the start of the bumper as a signal to start the tape before "taking" it at the bumper's end. In the event of a glitch, the bumper was neither commercial nor programming content, and money would not be lost by the network or broadcaster.[citation needed]
In theUnited Kingdom, abreak-bumper is a brief appearance of a logo before and afteradvertising breaks, usually that of thetelevision channel being watched.
Break-bumpers can either be animated or static. They are sometimes branded to advertise a special programme or event that will be broadcast on that channel, such as sporting events.
Historically, break-bumpers within a programme were tied to the programme itself, often featuring an image from the show, a short extract from the show's theme tune, and a caption naming the show and containing words such as "End of Part 1" (at the start of a break) or "Part 2" (at the end of a break). Some channels will also include a secondary bumper, which appears between channel trailers (which usually book-end ad breaks) and the commercial adverts themselves.E4 from launch and for a long time afterwards would use each of these to display the appropriate half of a two-word phrase.
InAustralia, abreak-bumper can be a brief appearance of a programme logo, animated logo, title card or an animated title card, just before anadvertising break.
Break-bumpers can also be either animated or static information bars that appear for a few seconds, with program title and the logo of thetelevision channel being watched. These are more often seen after a break and sometimes followed by information bars that show what programme is coming next or later.
InJapan, an eyecatch (アイキャッチ,aikyatchi) or internal eyecatch is a short scene or illustration used to begin and end a commercial break in a television program, especially inanime andtokusatsu shows. The term is used, in Japan, to refer to all kinds of bumpers.
In many television series, eyecatches are contemporaneous into theclimax of a story, leading onto speculation during the commercial break.
Unlike in American programs, in which bumpers are typically supplied by the network (when they have them at all), eyecatches are almost always produced by the production company and considered a part of the program itself, rather than (or also serving as) a segue into a commercial break. They are typically two to six seconds in length. Eyecatches for children's programs are often longer and more elaborate, while eyecatches for programming intended for adults may consist of nothing more than the program's logo against a black background.[original research?]
The term is used in the title of the 1991 Japanese filmEyecatch Junction.
In the 1990s, commercial bumpers were used by terrestrial television networks. Similar to those in the United Kingdom, it is a short appearance of a logo or a slide to remind the viewers of the programme being aired, which appears before or after breaks. The logo is usually that of thetelevision channel orstation being watched and/or of the programme's title. However, as the years passed on until the late 2000s, this changed to feature a message that the programme will return after the break ends, which is now more commonly seen onRTM'sTV1 andTV2 andMedia Prima'sNTV7,8TV andTV9.TV3 also uses this for sponsored programmes, but as of 2013, it also uses them for non-sponsored programs, such as children's programmes. The 1990s bumper style, however, is sometimes used sparingly.
Since 2003, nearly all ofAstro'ssatellite television channels feature break bumpers that are placed before and after breaks. These bumpers consist of the logo of the aforementioned channels, as well as a slide promoting the current programme being broadcast and the next programme scheduled to air. Bumpers based on the subscription information sequence seen at the end ofAstro Box Office promotional trailers from 2003 to 2006, appear in-between commercials and immediately before the program break ends, but not at the beginning of the block of replaced commercials.
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In thePhilippines, one notable example of a television network that use break bumpers isABS-CBN. From March 1, 1987, to October 30, 2005, its break bumper featured the stars zooming in on a black background, based on the Star Network era. This was the longest break bumper to be used by the network since its relaunch in 1986, being used for 18 years. It was made byScanimate, as Cascom Effect 10. On its last two years of usage from 2003 to October 2005, it was extended where after the first loop, the star fades and repeats an animation before it ends.
On October 31, 2005, five years after the 2000 ABS-CBN logo was unveiled, the 1987 break bumper was replaced with the one that takes place on a blue background, with the network's 1999 logo appearing on a screen and when it zooms out, it places on a box or crystal plane and then the logo zooms in, based on its ident in 2004. The 2005 break bumper was used until February 4, 2014.
The break bumper again changed on February 5, 2014 due to the 2013 logo that was first used on September 9, 2013, this time taking place on a white background, with the 2013 ABS-CBN logo appearing on a screen, red, green and blue strings representing the colors of the network's logo appear while the logo is being zoomed out, and it zooms in. It lasted on ABS-CBN free television channels from February 2014 to the shutdown of ABS-CBN Regional channels on August 28, 2020. From June 13, 2016 to August 28, 2020, the 2014 bumper is shown in widescreen or letterboxed format, making the first break bumper to be in 16:9 aspect ratio. It returned three years later in 2023 onKapamilya Online Live as one of the montages of its bumper.
Kapamilya Channel, replacement of the ABS-CBN terrestrial network, show the 2013 logo on the screen and colors it with red, green, blue, and black. The rings will then zoom in, and the Kapamilya Channel logo will display and replace the ABS-CBN logo. ABS-CBN rings will then use as background once the Kapamilya Channel logo appears and the logo will zoom in along with the rings.
Since April 17, 2022,A2Z, ABS-CBN's blocktime channel withZOE Broadcasting Network, have also its own break bumper. It shows the A2Z logo forming animation where it stays on the screen and zooms in on a right-slant fashion, similar to Kapamilya Channel. It shows on programs, whether ABS-CBN produced or not, if a channel is connected to the main ABS-CBN/Kapamilya Channel broadcast feed with the latter's bumper simply replaced with A2Z's own.
Upon the start of airing of ABS-CBN programming onTV5 in January 24, 2021, show-exclusive break bumpers ofABS-CBN Entertainment/Studios were introduced where either the respective show's characters, elements related to the show and parts of the show's logo are shown during the duration of the bumper or simply show both logos upon airing of the show-exclusive bumper. At the end of each bumper, either all of the two or simply the logo of a show appears and after they appear, an object related to the show, show's logo, or logo of the show and its characters zoom in on various angles with some on a straightforward manner like the 2014–2020 break bumper of ABS-CBN terrestrial network. Break bumpers of foreign television series, some programs, and programming blocks do not have the distributor logo above. This also applies on A2Z if it is not connected to main blocktimer feed from April 2022 andGMA Network since April 6, 2024[3][4]
From March 1, 1987 to August 28, 2020, they lasted for 2 seconds. It extended at 5 seconds starting with the Kapamilya Channel break bumper since June 13, 2020 and applies to further bumpers made after that.
They always originally followed after the product placements and before the first TV network ad signalled that program resume is near from March 1987 to August 2014 for ABS-CBN broadcast. Due to the modernization of its broadcast facilities in the 2010s, the format of having the bumper and TV network ads shown first after the title card marking a pause to the program before proceeding to product ones leading to its resume was implemented at the said month of 2014. It is also used on its successor Kapamilya Channel. However, the older 1987 format is still used occasionally by the network itself until late 2010s, TV5, and A2Z if not connected to the ABS-CBN feed. All of them have no music played at all or silent.
InPoland, television networks usually separate the rest of the programming with the word "Reklama" ("Commercial"). One of the examples areTVP's ones: First one was used since 1989 until 1990 and it consisted an ad agency's logo (eye in a form of letter S) in a black background with indigo 3D stars. Second one was used until 1992, which consisted newer ad agency logo (Loop in a form of during this time acronym (TP) with a ball) and a word "REKLAMA" in lower left corner in a black (until 1991 blue) background. Third one was used in early 1992 and it was a laser smashing a metal ball, in which later rotating 'REKLAMA' appears and in the same year, later version appeared, in which squares (or diagonal stripes, depending on channel) rotated the same word (and the same font) as previous. This one was used until launch of 1995 one (Inspired bygyroscope), in which was used until 1997. Later, in the late 1990s, these bumpers were used, depending on era, but had one thing: word in a ball (except July–August 1999, in which a "Meandres" series was used). Since 2000 (except 2012–2015, in which were was in both channels, inspired bykaleidoscope), graphics are now separated, and TVP1 since 2010 with newer graphic technologies, (TVP2 has the same since 2007), formerly, they had inspired by art (TVP1 – 2000–2010, TVP2 – 2000–2007), or by real-life ones (TVP1 had two bumpers inspired with it in which first ones was used for short period in 2010, second ones was used until 2012, TVP2 also had ones from the same era, but in a colors: Blue (in Winter) or purple (other seasons) and Orange, the same technique is used in branding from 2015 to 2021, but in all colors).Polsat, the first commercial TV Channel in Poland, used following bumpers:
1992-1994: Rotating spiral from Polsat's 1992 logo with REKLAMA text under it.
1994-1996: Rotating stripes forming a background and, appearing later, REKLAMA text. There were two variants: Blue-silver and pink-gold.
1996-1998: The sun emerges partially (upper part seen) from golden liquid and REKLAMA text (blue, withArial font) appears on the lower right corner. On the end of ad break, it's the reversed situation.
1998 Easter: A chick runs on blue background, forming REKLAMA text. At the end of block, chick returns to previous place, removing colo(u)rful text.
1998-2001: "reklama" text repeated thrice, each one in different size, on white-indigo background.
InArgentina, since around September 2010, it is compulsory for almost all broadcasters to use a commercial bumper, using the words "Espacio publicitario" (Commercial break) to separate the rest of the programme from the advertisements.
In Indonesia, bumpers are uncommon, but channels known to have bumpers includedthe Indonesian branch of Spacetoon (with the textsKAMI AKAN KEMBALI "we will return" before andKAMI KEMBALI "we returned" after breaks), and now defunctLampung TV [id] (used after breaks and used in 2008, featuring its mascot Mr. eL).[5] InMalay, "kami akan kembali" and "kami kembali" also mean the same thing in Indonesian. Other idents called "bumpers", are in fact, only used before and/or after the Maghrib and Subuh (Fajr) adhan,[a] of which may be replaced by commercial breaks andTV show promos,PSA outside the Jakarta feed, and not used elsewhere.[b] From 1993 to the unknown date, when RCTI and SCTV begin its national on-air, both of the television stations randomly displaying the still image of regional relay transmission station and its iconic regional symbol of its region, or its still image ident.
InGerman-speaking countries, the word "Werbung" (Advertisement) is used; in Switzerland, this word is also used in different languages:French: Publicité or Pub in short;Italian: Pubblicità. The same goes forFrance andItaly, but only second and third ones are written, respectively.
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Bumpers orexternal eyecatches on children's television networks, and sometimes other networks, are similar to theinternal eyecatches used in Japanese anime, with the difference being that the bumpers are supplied by the network. These usually appear only at the end of commercial breaks, but sometimes leading into the start of the break as well. Their primary purpose is to alert children that the commercial break has ended. Depending on the network, the bumper may or may not feature avoice over.[6][7]
Often, these eyecatches have a secondary purpose:marketing. For example, cable networkNickelodeon uses them to help children learn to identify the network and thus increasebrand awareness. Most children's television networks run these bumpers because of this reason. From the mid-1980s to the early 1990s periods, (in conjunction with branding firmFred/Alan, Inc.), the network created 225 bumpers, some featuring catchy doo-wop jingles recorded bya cappella groupThe Jive Five.