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Time Warner Cable’s decision to pay Viacom more to carry networks including MTV and Nickelodeon demonstrates that when programmers and cable operators fight over money, it’s the pipeline that feels the pinch first and faces more downside risk. Viacom last week threatened to pull its 19 channels off Time...
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After a 2008 full of brinksmanship and bullying between television stations and the cable operators that carry their signals, 2009 may shape up as the jittery calm before a bigger political storm over retransmission consent. More than 50% of the agreements that cover the retransmission of local TV stations...
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Despite the current economic downturn, the Consumer Electronics Show kicking off in Las Vegas this week is projecting that attendance in the entertainment category will hold steady with last year. Overall, the Consumer Electronics Association expects about 130,000 attendees for the annual tech-centric...
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01-04-2009
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Filed under: Broadcast, Cable, NBC, Syndication, Print Edition, Today, Access Hollywood, G4, Sony, Dr. Oz, Jeopardy!, CES, NBC Evening News, Attack of the Show
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The long and hard-fought presidential election proved to be the gift that kept on giving for cable news channels in 2008, with all enjoying year-to-year ratings growth. After Barack Obama’s historic presidential victory, ratings began to return to earth, but Fox News Channel, CNN and MSNBC all racked...
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TV critics and Emmy voters don’t always see eye to eye, but when it comes to the delights of Don Draper, the two camps are completely copacetic. Avoiding any signs of a sophomore slump, AMC’s “Mad Men”—which in September snagged the drama series Emmy—soared to the top of TelevisionWeek ’s semiannual...
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The Business of Television
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01-04-2009
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Filed under: Broadcast, Cable, FX, Showtime, ABC, HBO, NBC, The Office, Pushing Daisies, Mad Men, AMC, Chuck, 30 Rock, Print Edition, Friday Night Lights, Comedy Central, The Shield, The Daily Show With Jon Stewart, True Blood, Dexter, Critics Poll
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In their eternal quest to attract both ratings and headlines, television networks once relied upon “event” programming. But HBO’s recent sweep of eight Emmys for “John Adams” notwithstanding, the heyday of the miniseries has long passed. Later came the era of appointment television, when landmark series...
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I have a mission for the new year. It’s to use this column and other forums to help media companies understand why consumers cut the cord from their cable or satellite television service and choose instead to rely on broadband-powered video to watch their TV shows. Here’s why this matters: Because the...
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“Life After People” is finding new life as a series on History. “Life After People” set ratings records for History in its original incarnation as a special. The program showed how cities, buildings and bridges would eventually crumble without human maintenance and be overrun by nature. It pulled in...
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In his 2-month-old position as CEO of Bloomberg’s multimedia group, Andrew Lack is plotting the future of the financial news empire’s expanding television, interactive and radio operations. Mr. Lack, a veteran media executive whose resume includes a turn as president of NBC and NBC News, isn’t ready...
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For television, there seem to be more questions than answers as 2008 comes to a close: How many industry pros will lose their jobs? How long will the recession last? How badly will the advertising market that is TV’s lifeblood falter? Wave after wave of anxiety-provoking headlines don’t help matters...
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12-14-2008
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Filed under: Broadcast, Cable, Digital, Fox, Emmys, DTV, Advertising, CBS, NBC, YouTube, Google, Viacom, Syndication, MSNBC, The Doctors, Katie Couric, CBS Evening News, Print Edition, Ben Silverman, Web Video, TV Ads, CNN, Kevin Martin, Project Runway, Friday Night Lights, Dr. Oz, DirecTV, American Idol, Dr. Phil, Oprah, Bill O'Reilly, Sumner Redstone, Chris Matthews, Rosie Live, Larry King, Oscars, Subchannels, Grammys, Harvey Levin, Ellen DeGeneres, John Roberts
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HBO will preview the first episode of the new season of its comedy “Flight of the Conchords” on the FunnyorDie.com Web site this week, a month before the series launches on the cable channel. HBO bought a stake in the Will Ferrell-backed site earlier this year. The sneak peek, which will last four days...
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With comedy “George Lopez” powering Nick at Nite to the top spot in the ratings among adults 18 to 49 for 2008, the network is reaching out to the comedian to team on more projects. “We’re talking to George Lopez. He’s been a great partner to us and we hope to do more work with him in the future,” said...
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When the economy turns bad, what’s a lifestyle network supposed to do? The new management at HGTV is planning to add more reality to its real estate shows and make its design shows more competitive. “One of the first things that we wanted to do right was to step up the amount of design competition on...
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Last week’s avalanche of pink slips emanating from Viacom and NBC Universal may be the worst of it for the immediate future, but media executives will have to digest more bad news on the economic and advertising fronts before television industry workers feel much security. “I think for now, meaning over...
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Experimenting with a different kind of programming rollout, A&E Network later this month plans to air the pilot of a series about a former undercover New York City detective who searches for runaway kids. It is unusual for A&E to air pilots, said Rob Sharenow, senior VP for nonfiction programming...