Multichannel News back issues from September 2005:
'Time of crisis'.(Hurricane Katrina affected the cable television broadcasting industry)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Due to the increasing chaos caused by the enormity of the damage caused to the country's Gulf Coast by Hurricane Katrina, affected operators last week said they couldn't even begin to quantify the loss to business operations in the region. At this point, their primary concern is ...
Devastation shakes weather channel vets.(Jeff Morrow)
Sep 05, 2005; ... The Weather Channel's Jeff Morrow said he still wonders about a clerk at the Hyatt Hotel in New Orleans who didn't realize the severity of approaching Hurricane Katrina until the network's crew decided they needed to get out of town in order to save themselves and their equipment. ...
Storm story veers into disaster epic.(Hurricane Katrina)
Sep 05, 2005; ... What began as a seemingly typical hurricane--with shots of reporters fighting to remain standing as Hurricane Katrina hit land--gradually turned into a story few thought anyone would see in the United States, as the cameras spread to capture the biggest natural disaster to hit the country ...
Steinert-Threlkeld to helm 'MCN': 'Baseline' founder, 'Inter@ctive Week' top editor to take helm Sept. 26.(Multichannel News International)(Tom Steinert-Threlkeld)
Sep 05, 2005 ... NEW YORK -- Tom Steinert-Threlkeld, a longtime business journalist and an editorial executive at Ziff Davis Media, has been hired as the new editor-in-chief at Multichannel News, effective Sept. 26. He replaces Marianne Paskowski, who retired from MCN and parent company Reed ...
Dish: keep the exemption.(EchoStar Communications Corp. sued for copyright infringement to DBS Industries Inc.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Eliminating the retransmission-consent exemption currently enjoyed by direct-broadcast satellite providers could harm consumers because DBS companies would likely drop distant signals, EchoStar Communications Corp. argued in a Sept. 1 to the federal Copyright Office. The ...
TVN, Sound Choice adding VOD karaoke.(The Karaoke Channel)(TVN Entertainment Corp.)(Slep-Tone Entertainment Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... NEW YORK -- TVN Entertainment Corp. will announce today (Sept. 5) the launch of a new on-demand service called The Karaoke Channel. TVN is creating the channel with Sound Choice, which provides karaoke music tracks and equipment. The service will launch with 300 to ...
E! Networks pledges PSA to aid Red Cross.(public service advertising)(American Red Cross)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... LOS ANGELES -- E! Networks will partner with the Hollywood community to create a public-service-announcement campaign to support the American Red Cross in its efforts to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina, officials said Friday. The PSAs, which started airing on E! and Style this ...
Can cable stage a fall encore? Networks hope to sustain momentum from strong summer ratings performance.
Sep 05, 2005; ... Cable, coming off a sizzling summer, hopes to ride that momentum into the fall, when broadcast brings on its onslaught of new programming. Cable officials said they're undaunted about competing against broadcast's new--and heavily promoted--lineups. They still expect their ...
MTV might need calmer site in '06.(THROUGH THE WIRE)(Video Music Awards )
Sep 05, 2005; ... MTV: Music Television hasn't made a decision yet about whether Miami will remain the venue for the network's Video Music Awards show next year, a spokesman for the programmer said last week. All in all, it wasn't a very good year for the signature event, which took place Aug ....
Verizon gets big Fla. video franchise.(THROUGH THE WIRE)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Verizon Communications Inc. gained approval for its largest video rollout to date, when the Manatee County (Fla.) Commission voted Aug. 27 to grant a cable franchise passing 235,000 homes. The agreement includes only county territory, not the incorporated cities of Bradenton, ...
Ops see E911 confirmation snags.(customer acknowledgements for MCC Telephony, Armstrong Digital Services, Charter Communications Inc. etc intimations )
Sep 05, 2005; ... Charter Communications Inc. told the Federal Communications Commission last Thursday that only half of its phone customers have submitted the required acknowledgements of their understanding that emergency-911 service may not work in some instances, and warned it might not be able to ...
Icahn eyeing, a Time Warner tender.(Carl Icahn)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Carl Icahn is apparently turning up the heat on his latest target, Time Warner Inc., as reports surfaced last week that the corporate raider is considering making a tender offer for as much as 10% of the media giant's stock. Icahn began making waves at Time Warner in early ...
Cable Positive honors Adelphia's Tagliente.(Brad Wojcoski Memorial Award)(Adelphia Communications Corp.)(Ida Tagliente)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... NEW YORK -- AIDS-action organization Cable Positive has named Ida Tagliente, regional manager of public relations and community affairs at Adelphia Communications Corp., the 2005 recipient of the Brad Wojcoski Memorial Award for outstanding contribution to the fight against HIV and AIDS by ...
Kaitz plans workshop on supplier diversity.(EVENTS)(Walter Kaitz Foundation)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... NEW YORK -- The Walter Kaitz Foundation plans a workshop on supplier diversity here on Sept. 12, coinciding for the first time with the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC)'s annual conference and the cable industry's "Diversity Week." The New York ...
Net goes local in L.A. LTV to target younger Angelenos with lifestyle-oriented fare.(PROGRAMMING)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Local Television Network Inc., trying to attract hip young adults in Los Angeles with local programming, will debut this fall as a program block carried by distributors reaching 3.7 million homes in Southern California, officials said last week. LTN launches Oct. 3 as nightly ...
Current adds to its roster.(Current TV L.L.C. hires)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Former Vice President Al Gore's Current TV has hired a director of research as well as some new on-air talent, including the cofounder of the Lyricist Lounge, officials said last week. Brian Fiori, a veteran of UPN and stations such as KRON-TV in San Francisco, will serve as ...
A 'Viva' to spike TV for this baseball doc.(REVIEW)(Viva Baseball)(Television Program Review)
Sep 05, 2005; ... When one thinks of intelligent, well-crafted documentaries, Spike TV is not usually the first name that comes to mind. But the Dan Klores-directed Viva Baseball is a mature departure from Spike's usual fare. The documentary has more in common with the HBO Sports lineup than Spike's roster ....
Starz On Demand gets 'Incredible'.(On Demand: WHERE CONTENT MEETS TECHNOLOGY: VOD * HDTV * DVR * ITV * HSI)(The Incredibles to debut on Starz Encore Group L.L.C.)
Sep 05, 2005; ... September will mark a milestone for Starz On Demand, with the debut of The Incredibles Sept. 15--well in advance of the movie's Sept. 24 debut on the linear Starz service. Though it started premiering movies via subscription video on demand early this summer, the box office ...
San Antonio's big conversion: Time Warner system 'cuts over' to Broadbus from SeaChange.(On Demand: WHERE CONTENT MEETS TECHNOLOGY: VOD * HDTV * DVR * ITV * HSI)
Sep 05, 2005; ... The engineers at Time Warner Cable's San Antonio system had a busy summer. The system switched out its video-on-demand server gear, going from servers in 28 hub locations to two servers in two redundant locations, while implementing dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM) and installing an ...
Will VOD benefit from DVD woes: musings by Disney's Iger have larger implications for cable.(ON DEMAND)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Windows need to compress." If you were on vacation for most of August, you might have missed that quote, uttered by a major media player. No, it wasn't made by an MSO executive, but by none other than Robert Iger, the soon-to-be CEO of The Walt Disney Co., once Michael Eisner steps down. ...
SVOD Lineup.(SEPTEMBER'S PREMIUM)(subscription video-on-demand)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Highlights from the month's subscription video-on-demand offerings from Home Box Office, Showtime Networks Inc., Starz Entertainment Group, Here!, Playboy TV, Uncensored On Demand, World Picks on Demand and WWE 24/7. >> Home Box Office << SERIES: Comeback ...
First-run VOD.(SEPTEMBER MOVIES)(Illustration)
Sep 05, 2005 ... <Pre> SEPTEMBER MOVIES First-Run VOD The following tables list the first-run and continuing movies in the video-on-demand window from the major studios that supply product to cable operators: Sony Pictures, Universal Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, Warner Bros., New Line Cinema, ...
Si TV on a barter spree Latino net partners with outlets like XM, Universal Motown.(ADVERTISING & MARKETING)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Si TV has cut a series of cross-marketing deals aimed at promoting the network without forcing it to shell out much cash. The English-language network, which targets second-and third-generation Latinos living in the United States, recently signed cross marketing deals with XM Satellite ...
ESPN's HD 'Blitz'.(PROMOTIONS)(ESPN Radio to promote DirecTV Inc.'s high-definition television)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005; ... ESPN has cut an unusual deal with DirecTV Inc. to help the top satellite-TV provider market high-definition programming. The hosts of Mike and Mike in the Morning, televised on ESPNews and broadcast via ESPN Radio, unveiled a promotion last Thursday through which DirecTV, ESPN ...
Discovery, Samsung teaming on HDTV.(Samsung Electronics America Inc.'s marketing of High definition television)(Discovery Communications Inc.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... SILVER SPRING, MD. -- Samsung Electronics America Inc. and Discovery Communications Inc. said they'll team up to market Samsung HDTVs and Discovery's high-definition programming in more than 40 countries. Under the long-term deal, Samsung will display Discovery HDTV content on ...
Turner Sports gets Orbitz sponsorship.(Turner Broadcasting System Inc. Turner Sports)(Orbitz L.L.C. )(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... ATLANTA -- Turner Sports said it formed a broad integrated marketing partnership with Orbitz which will see the airline online travel service sponsor TBS's college-football coverage and Turner Network Television's coverage of the PGA Grand Slam of Golf. As part of the agreement, ...
Hispanic, cable lead in ad gains: overall outlays rises 5% from year-ago.(ADVERTISING & MARKETING)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Spanish-language TV and cable are leading the media pack in terms of the biggest gains in U.S. ad spending, which overall is up 5.7% for the first half of the year, according to preliminary figures released last week by Nielsen Monitor-Plus. Spanish-language TV advertising was ...
Automat.(Katy Leigh is staff producer at Automat Pictures)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Production company Automat Pictures has elevated KATY ...
Comcast.(appointments at Comcast Corp.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... CHRISTOPHER McDONALD was named director, legislative affairs for Comcast Corp. in Florida. He had been a Florida lobbyist for AT&T Corp. Also, CURTIS PERSON was named Comcast's director, legislative affairs for Tennessee. He comes from Charter Communications Inc. and is a ...
Cox.(Ron Peterson Jr. and Cecil B. Smyth are account executives of Cox Media)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... RON PETERSON JR. has rejoined Cox Media, the ad-sales arm of Cox Communications Inc., in Hampton Roads, Va., as a local account executive. ...
Davie-Brown.(Robert T. Schneider is executive vice president of Davie-Brown Entertainment )(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... ROBERT T. SCHNEIDER has joined Davie-Brown Entertainment in Los Angeels as executive rice ...
D-Link.(John Difrenna is vice president of D-Link Systems Inc. )(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... JOHN DIFRENNA was upped to rice president, channel sales, U.S. and Mexico at ...
ETI.(ETI Software Solutions elevates Greg Gross to director)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Service-activation software company ETI Software Solutions has elevated GREG ...
Fox Cable.(Jamia Bigalow is the vice president of Fox Cable Networks Group)(Eric Schmidt is manager)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... JAMIA BIGALOW has joined Fox Cable Networks Group as vice president, affiliate marketing. She was director, affiliate marketing at NFL Network. ...
In Demand.(Stacie Gray is senior vice president and Trish Johns Scanlon is executive director )(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... STACIE GRAY was elevated to senior vice president, marketing, and executive creative director at ...
MCCA.(Bill Wright is elected for Minnesota Cable Communications Association's board)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Comcast Corp. Minnesota area vice president BILL WRIGHT was elected ...
SES Americom.(Alan Young is the new senior vice president)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... ALAN YOUNG was named senior vice president, chief technical officer at SES Americom ....
Sesame Workshop.(Muyng Kang-Huneke is the new vice president)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... MUYNG KANG-HUNEKE was elevated to vice president, general ...
Time Warner Cable.(appointments)(Bob Barlow is the new president )(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... BOB BARLOW was named president of Time Warner Cable's South ...
Univision.(Jeff Zimmerman )(Univision Network L.P.'s new vice president)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... JEFF ZIMMERMAN was elevated to vice president, Univision and TeleFutura National Sales, based ...
Major shows.(conferences in cable industry)(Brief Article)(Calendar)
Sep 05, 2005 ... September 11-13 19th Annual NAMIC Conference, The Westin New York at Times Square, New York. Contact: Nicole Lido (212) 594-5985 or visit www.namic.com. 14 Walter Kaitz Foundation, 2005 Annual Fundraising Dinner, Hilton New York Hotel, New ...
Events.(Calendar)
Sep 05, 2005 ... September 7-9 Women In Cable & Telecommunications, Executive Development Seminar, Temecula Creek Inn, Temecula, Calif. Contact: Tiffany Marsh, (303) 234-9804 or tmarsh@wict.org. 13 3rd Annual Combined North/South Dakota Cable Association Show, ...
Meet the press.(FREEZE FRAME)
Sep 05, 2005 ... At BET's National Association of Black Journalists Conference reception in Atlanta (l. to r.): BET president, entertainment Reginald Hudlin; Comic View host Sheryl ...
Wild West City.(FREEZE FRAME)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Execs from Cox Communications and Cox Business Services were on hand for the groundbreaking of Wild West World in Park City, Kan. On hand (third row, l. to r.): Chuck Reid, SVP, Cox Media; Will Steinhoff, sales manager, Cox Business; Scott Petre, SVP, Cox Business; and Jay Allbaugh, SVP, ...
Just a bit outside.(FREEZE FRAME)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Roy Dobkowski of Brooklyn, N.Y., is all smiles even though his pitches fell short in MSG Network's "Dodge Million Dollar Pitch Sweepstakes." On hand at Smith Haven (N.Y.) Dodge (l. to ...
The mom show.
Sep 05, 2005 ... Stay-at-home mom Rachel Phelps is The Outdoor Channel's newest air personality, having won the "Win Your Own Fishing Show" contest. Pictured (l. to r.): Wendy Anderson, affiliate event coordinator; Amy ...
Getting the boot.(FREEZE FRAME)(Encore Westerns wins Golden Boot Awards)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Encore Westerns was a winner at the 2005 "Golden Boot Awards," staged at The Beverly Hilton. Pictured (l. to r.): Starz Entertainment Group's Allyson Taylor; film ...
Channel champs.(FREEZE FRAME)
Sep 05, 2005 ... The NCTC honored Scripps Networks as its 2005 Programmer of the Year. Pictured (l. to r.): NCTC SVP of programming Frank Hughes; ...
Vendor victors.
Sep 05, 2005 ... The NCTC als honored TVC as Vendor of the Year. Pictured (l. to r.): co-op president Mike Pandzik; TVC's ...
Packing some help.
Sep 05, 2005 ... Bright House Networks and the Sun Sports regional sports network teamed up to donate 300 backpacks to needy students in the Central Florida area through A Gift For ...
Papal premiere.
Sep 05, 2005 ... At the premiere of Hallmark Channel's The Man Who Became Pope (l. to r.): Paul FitzPatrick, EVP and COO, Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel; Monsignor William P. Fay, General Secretary, United ...
Intrepid gathering.
Sep 05, 2005 ... Marking the 60th anniversary of V-J Day on the flight deck of the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum in New York (l. to r.): ...
Connecticut taking a closer look: Regulators seek info on SBC, Verizon plans for video services.(SBC Communications Inc., Verizon Communications Inc., Connecticut. Department of Public Utility Control)
Sep 05, 2005; ... In what could be a groundbreaking move, utility regulators in Connecticut are attempting to determine if they have the authority to regulate SBC Communications Inc.'s planned Internet-delivered video service. "No one else is doing this inquiry" in the i3 states served by the ...
Intelsat, PanAmSat to merge: $3.2B deal would create dominant global satellite player.(PanAmSat Holding Corp.)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Privately held Intelsat Ltd. made a move to become the dominant player in the global satellite industry last week, unveiling a deal to acquire PanAmSat Holdings Corp. for $3.2 billion in cash. Intelsat will pay about $25 per share for PanAmSat, a 25% premium to its Aug. 26 ...
Michael Rigas hires Mulcahey's attorney.(THE RIGAS CASE)(Michael Mulcahey)(Mark Mahoney)
Sep 05, 2005; ... Former Adelphia Communications Corp. executive vice president of operations Michael Rigas, awaiting a retrial on fraud charges, has turned to Buffalo, N.Y., attorney Mark Mahoney, who was able to secure an acquittal for former Adelphia assistant treasurer and co-defendant Michael Mulcahey ....
Nexstar rises, then falls, on speculation.(Stock Focus: NEXSTAR BROADCASTING GROUP INC. (NASDAQ--NXST))(Nexstar Broadcasting Group's securities)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Nexstar shares began to cool off after setting a blistering pace last Monday on speculation the TV-station group could be sold in the wake of Raycom Media Inc.'s $987 million purchase of Montgomery, Ala.-based station group Liberty Corp. Nexstar, which has battled cable ...
Weekly movers.(INDUSTRY STOCKS)(Illustration)
Sep 05, 2005 ... <Pre> WEEKLY MOVERS Gainers 23 Losers 41 Unchanged 5 New High 5 New Low 4 Note: Table made from bar graph WEEKLY MOVERS Top 5 Percentage GAINERS Charter Communications Inc. 30.43 Time Warner Telecom (H) 12.28 ...
Cable's got momentum.(TIP SHEET)(good first half results will boost better performance in second half)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... Cable operators are well-positioned to grow video, voice and data subscribers in the second half, based on strong results in the first half of the year, according to a research report by Banc of America Securities analyst Doug Shapiro. Shapiro noted that cable basic-subscriber ...
Closing prices: August 30, 2005.(INDUSTRY STOCKS)(Illustration)
Sep 05, 2005 ... <Pre> CLOSING PRICES AUGUST 30, 2005 MSOSPrice Price Company 08/30/0508/23/05% Change Adelphia 0.110.11 0.00 Cablevision 31.38 30.94 1.42 ...
Sating subscribers' need to store video: multiroom DVRs just the start of what's on vendor drawing boards.(HOME NETWORKING)(digital video recorders)
Sep 05, 2005; ... As consumers build media libraries of video, music and photos on their home PCs and digital video recorders, there's an increased demand to move that content to different devices. Cable's primary set-top manufacturers have been working on both hardware and software solutions ...
Cable's answer to U.K.'s red button, called eTV, could be here soon.(TRANSLATION PLEASE)(understanding of enhanced television)
Sep 05, 2005; ... The late summer news from CableLabs that 16 companies accomplished a solid round of interoperability testing for "enhanced-TV" products seemed a useful entry into this latest chapter in the decades-long story that is ITV (interactive television). First things first: The "e" in ...
Samsung gets OCAP mod from CableLabs.(TWO-WAY DTV)(Open Cable Applications Platform)(Samsung Electronics Company Ltd.)(Brief Article)
Sep 05, 2005 ... LOUISVILLE, COLO. -- Samsung Electronics Corp. has achieved CableLabs certification status for an Open Cable Applications Platform-enabled, two-way interactive digital TV set. Other companies licensed to build OCAP-enabled devices include LG Electronics, Panasonic Consumer ...
NAB rallies for multicast: trade group chief: it's 'No. 1 priority'.
Sep 05, 2005; ... WASHINGTON -- The National Association of Broadcasters is trying harder to get Congress to mandate cable carriage of multicast broadcast streams. The move comes less than two months after NAB members reluctantly agreed to a 2009 "hard date" to return analog spectrum. DTV bills ...
Keep broadband sticky--and subs loyal.(Applications: FORUM)(managing customers )
Sep 05, 2005; ... The name of the game in the fiercely competitive broadband market (whether it's Yahoo! Music or future service offerings) is this: How do you engage subscribers, create loyalty and translate that loyalty into profitability? I read with keen interest iron Frankel's Forum piece ...
Bob and Kay belonged on list of 'Leaders'.(LETTERS)(Letter to the Editor)
Sep 05, 2005; ... To the Editor: [Regarding "Leaders of the Pack" in Multichannel News's 25th anniversary special issue, Aug. 29]: For such a young publication, I think your memory is lacking. Your list of leaders is certainly impressive and all are very deserving of recognition, but ...