The TV3 group and RTE now trade in the same way with fixed rates as the norm. RTE sets the benchmark price. Unfortunately for us, the price deteriorated from peak to trough in the recession by about 40 per cent and that has not helped the TV market. On recent tracking, the price of TV spot airtime in Ireland was 80 per cent of the European average.

Given that the average price index in Ireland was 112 per cent, it means there is a 32 per cent gap between costs in the economy and TV airtime. With major advertisers buying TV airtime at such a discount they have actually spent a third less due to the market's knock-down rates. To say this trend has been frustrating for broadcasters is being polite.

Media auditors have a lot to answer for in the race to the bottom and pushing short term gains. Thankfully, agencies recognise that endorsing the ‘let's get the cheapest and undercut at all cost' policy is counter-productive. All it did was reduce staff levels by over 15 per cent and deny independent broadcasters opportunities to improve the market.

How can we buck the trend? From a trading perspective, TV3 already punches beyond its weight to get more than its fair share of spend. TV3 revenues grew by six per cent to €60 million last year in a much depressed market. We are typically the second biggest cheque most agencies will write each month. TV3 is a household brand in every sense.

In 2009, we showcased TV3's new identity and launched 3e. No other Irish media brand has performed as well in terms of audience ratings, revenue and enhanced reputation. Last autumn we were the biggest supplier of young adult TV recruits. 3Sixty sends out a message: price is important but value and payment by results are more rewarding.

We have agreed deals with advertisers where part payment is subject to sales results at the end of the campaign. The idea works best where clients enter into exclusive deals. To launch their broadband, Imagine WiMax chose TV3 as their sole media partner in an airtime and sponsorship campaign.

‘Marketing needs to be brought back into the heart of business – it has become secondary to procurement' – Pat Kiely, commercial director, TV3

Last year, Love Irish Food ran a campaign to launch the brand to consumers and differentiate from all the ‘buy Irish' messages. There was blanket coverage across TV3 and 3e for a week. To launch itself in Ireland and target its core female audience, Littlewoods sponsored Coronation Street and ran various promotions and online activity.

It can be difficult to find a model that works all the time, some of it is down to ‘taste it and see'. But if our audience are likely to buy a certain brand, or consume in a particular category, why be paid on an ‘eye balls' only basis? We believe breaking away from the old currency to a new product sales pitch is one way to ignore the race to the bottom.

To help us execute the 3Sixty plan, we put an expert team in place. Deirdre Macklin is a marketing graduate who joined TV3 from Setanta and worked her way up the ranks. Daragh Byrne has extensive agency and media experience and was part of the Channel 6 start-up. Matt Williams was with Viacom and Sky and spent 12 years at ITV in the UK.

On the programming front, it is worth noting TV3 has doubled the amount of Irish output to 40 per cent. Compare that to RTE 2, which is tracking at between ten and 20 per cent. The Irish version of the Channel 4 reality cookery series, Come Dine With Me will start next month, with Londis as sponsor. We are viewer led, we go where the viewers are.

Food has taken over from crime documentaries in the popularity stakes and it is now all about food, glorious food. Head Chef with Conrad Gallagher has done really well for us despite its difficult slot on a Friday night. We are looking at signing a new contract with Billy McGrath's Sideline Productions, along with a third major food series in the autumn.

TEAM EFFORT Pat Kiely, commercial director, TV3 with his 3Sixty colleagues Deirdre Macklin, head of brand content, Matt Williams, head of trading and Daragh Byrne, head of sales, in the Aviva Stadium.

The Apprentice returns in September. The show will make the same change as the UK version. Rather than just hiring the top person to work for him, Bill Cullen will invest €100,000 in the successful candidate's business idea. This year the total prize fund is about €250,000, including cash investment, mentoring time and advertising spend.

The aim is not just to have more viewers – if that was the case we could have 24-hour Coronation Street – with probably more, it is about picking up unique viewers. Take sport. Think back where TV3 was years ago. This summer we have a heightened GAA presence in ‘package two', with the minor football finals in Croke Park.

We will show the second best of five championship packages, including the Ulster and Connacht football finals as part of a nine-game series – two All-Ireland football quarter finals, two qualifers, three provincial finals, two other provincial fixtures. Champions League and Europa League football returns to TV3 and 3e midweek in the autumn.

Vincent Browne has been a huge asset for us. You could argue the most talked about leaders' debate during the general election was our debate. Xpose reaches almost a quarter of a million people every week, despite it going out at 6pm. Shows like it and Ireland AM are great examples of inventing brands and the 3Sixty approach to TV.

Its value goes way beyond a top show going out at teatime. Xpose Live, in partnership with SDL Exhibitions, filled the RDS for three nights. Xpose magazine published by RSVP magazine and a column in the Irish Sun provides three brand extensions from the one show in combination with a large six-figure revenue source from spot airtime.

Drama is extremely expensive on an hourly basis but we want to try and build on the success of The Tudors. We have a number of projects in the pipeline and drama is a genre we plan more of in the future. Jack Taylor is a BAI-funded which we will screen soon.

It is about diversifying and expanding the offering. Our market heritage would have been mid-market, 25 to 44 age group. But investment in the brand in recent years has seen us win more unique viewers, which from a media sales point of view is significant as it pushes up the TV3 value as an exclusive TV partner and our standing in relation to RTE.

Tying in with the 3Sixty model, the message is advertiser focused and agency friendly. The idea is to allow agencies redefine themselves and encourage them to play in space where they were previously excluded. Being just spot buyers is a road to nowhere for them. We aim to help them reinvent their role as communications specialists.

Pat Kiely, commercial director, TV3, said the 3 Sixty series is aimed at providing insights across the industry. TV viewership was now at an all-time high with more people watching than ever before. He was confident PP would drive premium revenue into Ireland's TV market. The 3 Sixty series is organised in association with Marketing.ie.

Paid-for product placement is part of the evolution of commercial television which has been around since1950 and its future success relies on both traditional spot advertising and PP working together as part of a wider effort for the benefit of producers, TV companies and brand owners, Larry Bass, chief executive, Screentime ShinAwil, told delegates attending TV3's 3Sixty product placement seminar in the Aviva Stadium.

Bass, whose company produces The Apprentice, You're a Star and Dragons' Den, said PP should not develop in isolation. Paid-for placement has made the headlines and given brands valuable exposure, not least Coca-Cola on American Idol with Simon Cowell. Marketers should look at the opportunities PP presents. Producers are anxious to work with brand owners in a way his firm did with Cadbury and Carat on The Apprentice.

Cadbury wanted to launch an Irish version of Dairy Milk and the show was given a lead role in a nationwide consumer competition. “We want a brand owner's message to be part of the show's DNA with embedded content,” Bass said. “PP has the potential to make a brand a hero and give it more personality than a spot ad could hope to achieve.”

But marketers must be mindful of PP's limitations and choose wisely what shows they should or should not make deals around. Paid-for placement will not work in all shows. PP research in the US found the market was valued at $3.7 billion in 2008. Placements on “emotionally engaging shows” were recognised by 43 per cent more viewers.

In addition, 57.5 per cent of viewers recognised a brand when viewed as PP in tandem with a spot commercial, an indication the two choices are complementary.

Bass is on the board of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI). He said the BAI largely based its new PP laws on the EU model. But while Ireland allows beer brands for PP, the UK regulator, Ofcom, decided to ban all alcohol from paid-for placements in the belief that the day when alcohol advertising may not be too far away.

Gary Knight, ITV's branded entertainment and digital sales director, spoke about the UK market. Chat shows are a popular target for brands and producers often get share of revenue. Apart from alcohol, tobacco, gambling, medicines and baby milk are on the paid-for no-go list. Beer is allowed as a no-fee prop in soaps like Coronation Street.

Commercial franchising is allowed for fee-based PP deals, not for props. Knight said the tendency so far has been towards a softly-softly approach and subtlety. To get into shows demands access to skilled people with an understanding of the PP process and TV scripts. Lead times are crucial and the closer you can get into the production cycle the better.

Marketers must be wary of conflicts, such as where a show is sponsored by a motor manufacturer and a PP deal is done to place a rival brand in the show. Contracts must cover all the details as clients do not have floating budgets. TV companies want to deal with one agency pitching the PP as dealing with different partners is a recipe for ruin.

Knight said it will take about 18 months to get over PP's teething problems. Digital insertion allows products to be placed in scenes post production and this is likely to be a growing trend. While PP can be used to promote brand awareness it is more about a brand's DNA. He expected PP in the UK to be worth