Multichannel News back issues from February 2006:
Spike TV shifts TNA to primetime lineup.(total non-stop action wrestling series in MTV Networks Inc. Spike TV)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... NEW YORK -- After losing World Wrestling Entertainment's Raw series last fall, Spike TV will once again feature pro wrestling in primetime when the network moves its Total Non-Stop Action Wrestling series to Thursday nights, beginning in April. TNA, which currently airs Saturday nights at ...
Bush taps McDowell for FCC.(George W. Bush appoints Robert McDowell to Federal Communications Commission )(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... WASHINGTON -- President Bush on Friday moved to end the partisan gridlock at the Federal Communications Commission by nominating Washington, D.C. attorney Robert McDowell to fill the third G0P seat at the five-member ...
Speed alum to Indians net.(Speed Channel Inc. appoints )(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... CLEVELAND -- Cable veteran Jim Liberatore has been named president of the new sports entertainment company that holds the rights to Cleveland Indians Major league ...
Corrections.(Correction Notice)
Feb 06, 2006 ... * Suzanne Scott, profiled in the Jan. 30 "Wonder Women" special section, never served as an assistant to Roger Ailes at CNBC or Fox News Channel. Judy Laterza has been Ailes's executive assistant for the past 19 years. * In the "Women to Watch" feature of the Jan. 30 "Wonder ...
Out of space, onto the ground: DirecTV works to marry satellite and wireless nets.
Feb 06, 2006; ... DirecTV Inc. is developing technology that would allow it to combine a wireless network on Earth with communications via satellite to offer customers high-speed Internet and telephone services. The company, owned primarily by global media magnate Rupert Murdoeh's News Corp., ...
Life lesson: distribution isn't a given.(Lifetime Television and EchoStar Communications Corp.)
Feb 06, 2006; ... Programmers should take heed from the monthlong feud--now resolved --between Lifetime Television and EchoStar Communications Corp.: Don't take your distribution for granted. Lifetime, a top-five cable network, had to fight in print and in the streets to get back on EchoStar's ...
Challenges await NFL net, OLN.(National Football League contracts )(Outdoor Life Network)
Feb 06, 2006; ... The National Football League's move to award its late-season, eight-game primetime package to NFL Network not only changes the game plan for its in-house service, but for Comcast Corp.'s OLN as well. The Jan. 28 decision caught many in the sports community by surprise. The first ...
DBS is top topic at Co-Op conference.(direct-broadcast satellite )
Feb 06, 2006; ... BY LINDA MOSS ALBOQOERQLIE, N.M. -- Small cable operators from America's heartland last week gathered and got intelligence on how to compete with the rival that is now the dominant provider of video services in the rural United States, direct-broadcast satellite. The ...
The Adelphia deadlock: the FCC is split and lobbyists want conditions put on the sale of the cable-system operator's assets.(Adelphia Communications Corp. assets are acquiring by Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Inc.)(Federal Communications Commission )
Feb 06, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Inc. could be forced to renounce exclusive sports-programming deals and pledge to keep their high-speed Internet lines open to all forms of Web content and commerce before federal regulators allow them to acquire the assets of Adelphia ...
Phone brings cable bundles of joy.(cable industry telephone services)(Column)
Feb 06, 2006; ... In late 1999, this lead on an Associated Press story was both timely and ironic. "Frustrated with poor service from his local phone provider, Ken Drachnik decided to go elsewhere: to a cable company." Timely because back then, only about 100,000 consumers across the country got ...
The high costs of airtime.(Letter to the Editor)
Feb 06, 2006; ... "What is it about sprinkling the word WiMax into a conversation about wireless networks that makes people think that all the hard stuff takes care of itself? Buying enough licensed spectrum to cover the ...
Speed would kill.(VOLUME CONTROL: VOICES FROM EVERYWHERE ON BROADBAND WIRELESS NETS)(Letter to the Editor)
Feb 06, 2006; ... "If a wireless solution offers comparable speed and access to cable and fiber, News Corp. [which owns DirecTV] could be in a position to undercut its phone and ...
Wireless rises in the east.(Indian Space Research Organization designing mobile television satellite)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006; ... "The sky may be falling on old media, but new media distribution--via satellite--is rising fast in Asia. Take for example, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) which is finalizing the design of a mobile television satellite. The mobile-video service, some two ...
Psyching out the cable guy.(EchoStar Communications Corp. is teaming up with DirecTV)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006; ... "The teaming of the two foes [EchoStar and DirecTV] would indeed be a remarkable event, and put investor and psychological pressure on the cable industry--even if the real-world impact of such a pairing is tangential. Neither satellite provider is capable of ...
Something to stand on.(EchoStar Communications Corp. and DIRECTV Inc. alliance)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006; ... "[Dish and DirecTV] only have one leg of a three-legged stool. This would give them two more legs." JIMMY ...
MCN online poll results.
Feb 06, 2006 ... Will The CW get higher ratings than The WB or UPN have managed? 64% Yes 36% No Go to Multichannel.com to vote on our next on-line poll: WEEK OF 2/6 How will ...
5:4 Five questions for: Mark Cuban.(on high definition television)(Interview)
Feb 06, 2006; ... The federal government has set a "hard date" for the transition to digital television transmission (Feb. 17, 2009). And more high-definition TV sets will be sold this year than conventional sets. Ready to take advantage of the breakout of HD television is colorful repeat entrepreneur Mark ...
Mets' net in carriage hunt: SportsNet NY seeks distribution, with cablevision, other ops.(New York Mets)
Feb 06, 2006; ... The start of baseball's regular season is still two months away, but the New York Mets' rookie channel is pitching local distributors hard. While SportsNet New York's roster counts 3 million subscribers from partners Time Warner Cable and Comcast Corp., it has yet to reach a deal with ...
A&E's 'Flight 93' pic takes off in Nielsens.(A and E Television Networks soared to largest audience )(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... New YORK -- A&E Network soared to the largest audience in its 22-year history with the Jan. 30 premiere of the original movie of Flight 93. The dramatic recreation of the events leading up to and surrounding the United Airlines ...
'Degrassi' takes to web as the N goes shortform.(The N launches online television series)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... NEW YORK -- The N unveiled its first original online series created exclusively for broadband Feb. 3. Degrassi Minis, two- to three-minute shorts that take place between existing episodes of the network's signature series, launched on www.the-n.com, with new installments ...
USA starts year off strong.(USA Networks Inc. market share)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006; ... USA Network, continuing its momentum from late last year, rang in 2006 with a ratings flourish, recording its best January primetime performance in six years. Bolstered by its WWE Monday Night Raw franchise and fresh installments of quirky detective series Monk, the characters ...
NBC U's Olympic game plan: Torino games to get 416 hours of television, internet coverage.(On Demand: Where Content Meets Technology)
Feb 06, 2006; ... When NBC Universal kicks off 416 hours of multiple-network Winter Olympics coverage from Torino, Italy, this week, the on-demand, interactive TV and broadband platforms won't be left behind. In addition to live and taped programming on broadcast and cable outlets NBC, USA ...
Turner puts on-demand ads on right track.(Turner Broadcasting System Inc.)
Feb 06, 2006; ... After years of trial and error, Turner Broadcasting System Inc. has settled on an on-demand advertising formula that it says works for consumers, advertisers and the network. The formula for success? A combination of five-second ad "bumpers" and 30-second commercials that, ...
Clout and doubt: a new host of delivery options changes the dynamics of programming.(ON DEMAND)
Feb 06, 2006; ... MATT STUMP TECHNOLOGY EDITOR As consumers increase their usage of all kinds of video screens--cell phones, Apple Computer Inc.'s iPods, broadband PCs and TVs--for all kinds of content, fundamental changes to the relationship between content companies and service providers are ...
Premium programming.(on cable television)
Feb 06, 2006 ... <Pre> Home Box Office SERIES: Carnivale (5-8) Entourage (9-15) From Earth to the Moon (5-8) Sex and the City (49-54) Six Feet Under (27-32) The Sopranos (27-39) MOVIES: Before Sunset Boycott Contact Days of Thunder Lackawanna Blues Man on Fire Miss ...
First-run features.(new movies box office report)(Illustration)
Feb 06, 2006 ... <Pre> First-Run Features The following tables list upcoming 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, ...
$20 billion question: AT&T contends lightspeed will up ante for cable.(TECHNOLOGY)
Feb 06, 2006; ... AT&T Inc. continues to glow about its plan to beam television programming and other services as pulses of light on glass fibers feeding into neighborhoods around the country, this time telling a group of analysts at a New York conference last week that the technology will force cable ...
For details on the Olympics, go to the remote control.(Time Warner Cable used Biap Systems Inc.'s software in set top boxes)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006; ... About 700,000 to 800,000 Time Warner Cable digital-cable subscribers in seven markets will be able to track medal counts, as well as access extensive TV listings, athlete biographies and other information through their remote controls when the Winter Olympics begin this Friday from Torino, ...
How IPTV differs from cable TV.(TRANSLATION PLEASE)
Feb 06, 2006; ... Every January, usually right after the Consumer Electronics Show, cable's technologists pack their bags and head to the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers' annual Conference on Emerging Technologies. Attending ET means sitting in a darkened room for two days, ...
Delivering ads on demand.(Anystream Inc.'s Agility video-on-demand software)
Feb 06, 2006; ... Anystream Inc. is introducing features to its video-on-demand software that will allow content producers to insert Nielsen Media Research audience measurement codes and cue tones for advertising slots into shows and clips, making it easier for cable systems to rotate commercials into ...
Digital deadline set: 2/17/09: bill switching off analog broadcast TV heads to White House after house passage.(POLICY)
Feb 06, 2006; ... WASHINGTON -- Mark your calendars, America: Over-the-air analog TV is scheduled to die Feb. 17, 2009. As a result of legislation passed by the House last Wednesday and sent to the White House, millions of analog TVs not connected to cable or satellite TV service will be useless ...
Insight suit highlights public-access dispute.(Insight Communications Company Inc.)
Feb 06, 2006; ... Squabbles that surface between regulators and cable operators over backing for public, educational and government channels commonly work out to be about operators attempting to diminish that support. But in a federal lawsuit pitting Insight Communications Co. against local ...
Phones now 'rocket engine' of growth: Comcast expects to add 1 million voice customers this year.(Comcast Corp. financial results)
Feb 06, 2006; ... Comcast Corp. plans to beef up its digital voice rollout this year, at the expense of some operating cash-flow growth. The largest cable-systems operator in the country, with 21.4 million subscribers, ended the year with about 202,000 phone customers. But Comcast chairman and CEO Brian ...
Good week for Time Warner, Parsons.(profit rises)
Feb 06, 2006; ... Rogue investor Carl Icahn turned up the heat in his battle with Time Warner Inc. last week, enlisting longtime media executive Frank Biondi into his effort to unseat management and break up the company. But Time Warner chairman and CEO Richard Parsons obtained some additional ammunition ...
Dividend may limit cablevision sale.(Cablevision Systems Corp.)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... Oppenheimer & Co. cable and satellite analyst Tom Eagan maintained his "buy" rating on Cablevision Systems Corp. last week, after the Bethpage, N.Y.-based cable systems operator said it could restart plans to issue a $3 billion cash dividend to shareholders. Cablevision said in ...
Weekly movers.(television broadcasting industry stock prices)(Brief Article)(Illustration)
Feb 06, 2006 ... <Pre> Multimedia Index Movement from 1/24/06-1/31/06 Compared to Standard & Poor's 500 MMI 650.961.09% S&P 1280.08 1.04% The Multichannel News Multimedia Index combines the prices of stocks listed on this page, weighted by their market capitalization. Stocks with ...
Weak forecast wilts Juniper Networks. (Stock Focus: JUNIPER NETWORKS INC.(Juniper Networks Inc.)
Feb 06, 2006 ... Juniper shares dipped nearly 21% ($4.46) to $17.06 on Jan. 26, the day after the computer-network equipment provider said its first quarter sales would be weaker than expected. The falloff came as Juniper reported strong fourth-quarter results --earnings were up 60% ...
Closing prices.(cable television broadcasting industry stock prices)(Illustration)
Feb 06, 2006 ... <Pre> CLOSING PRICES JAN. 31, 2006MSOs Company Price Price01/31/06 01/24/06 % Change Adelphia 0.06 0.05 44.44 Cablevision 24.60 ...
Tackling customer confusion: how ESPN distinguishes what's on TV, web, mobile phone.(MARKETING)
Feb 06, 2006; ... Even as the Seattle Seahawks lined up against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XL on Sunday, ESPN set a new-media formation with the debut of its cellular-phone service targeting hard-core sports fans. But the sports giant must tackle the challenge of how to convince ...
Influencing influencers.(National Cable and Telecommunications Association ad campaign by Strategic Perceptions)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006; ... The National Cable & Telecommunications Association kicked off a new marketing campaign last week, aimed at improving the industry's reputation on Capitol Hill. Called "A Great American Success Story," it began running on local TV and cable networks in the Washington, D.C. area ....
TV guide, NBC set Olympic tune-in effort.(Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc. TV Guide Publishing Group)(National Broadcasting Company Inc.)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... LOS ANGELES -- TV Guide and NBC have signed an integrated programming and marketing agreement across multiplatforms for the Winter Olympics that will play out in Torino, Italy, from Feb. 10 to 26. In addition to extensive coverage in TV Guide's Feb. 6 issue, other elements that ...
Bundle will bring in $120b by decade's end.(services in a package)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... DALLAS -- Annual revenue from bundled services in the U.S. will approach $120 billion by 2010, according to "The Business of Bundled Services: Consumers, Models, and Uptake," a new study from Parks Associates. The study projects that bundled services--voice, high-speed data and ...
Ads ask: 'Where Do You Vongo?'.(Starz Entertainment Group ad campaign)
Feb 06, 2006; ... With a new ad campaign, Starz Entertainment Group is not only interested in building brand awareness for its new subscription Internet movie service, but introducing consumers to a new verb. "Where Do You Vongo?" is the new tagline for SEG's Vongo broadband service, which ...
ABC Regional.(ABC Sports Inc. promotes Joe Maggio)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... ABC Regional Sports Sales, an advertising rep firm working with regional cable sports networks and ...
Arbitron.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)
Feb 06, 2006 ... SHEENA LEWIS was elevated to manager, customer relations, cable and ...
CN8.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)
Feb 06, 2006 ... MELISSA KENNEDY was prorooted to senior vice president, marketing ...
CNN Headline News.(appointments)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... DEAN SICOLI was elevated to executive producer of CNN Headline News' Nancy Grace. He was supervising producer and managing ...
Comcast SportsNet.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)
Feb 06, 2006 ... Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic has named AUSTIN KRABLIN as creative-services manager of ...
Cox.(appointment of Jonathan Freeland)(Cox Communications Inc.)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... Cox Communications Inc. has named JONATHAN FREELAND vice president, sales for its Kansas ...
CSTV.(CSTV: College Sports Television)(appointment of Kamal Patel, Chris Hamer, Tom Ramsey)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... CSTV: College Sports Television has elevated KAMAL PATEL to vice president, administration from VP, finance and Administration and David O'Neill to vice president, finance from VP, financial planning. Also, CHRIS HAMER has joined CSTV as senior vice president, general manager, ...
E! Networks.(appointment of Frank Albano, Jeff Mzyzurk)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... JEFF MAYZURK was elevated to senior vice president, technology at E! Networks. He was VP. ...
G4.(G4 Media Inc.)(appointments)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... G4, the TV-programming network focused on video games, has named veteran television producer JOHN RIEBER as senior vice president, production. He was senior VP, original programming at E! Entertainment Television. ...
Mun2.(appointment of Gloria Medel, Alex Pels, Luisa Varona)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... ALEX PELS has joined mun2 as general manager. Pels had been vice president of production and programming at MTV Latin America. Also, GLORIA MEDEL has joined Mun2 as West Coast executive producer. She had been president of production for Voy Pictures Television. LUISA ...
Events.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)(Calendar)
Feb 06, 2006 ... February 9 Kentucky Cable Telecommunications Association Winter Board of Directors/General Membership Meeting, Holiday Inn Capital Plaza, Franfkort, Ky. Contact: (270) 864-5352 or Randa Wright, randawright@mchsi.com. 9-10 CINIT, "Symposium on IP Telephony over Cable Networks," ...
NBC Universal.(appointments)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... NBC Universal has elevated several communications staffers: LIZ FISCHER and HILARY SMITH to vice president, corporate ...
OLN.(appointments)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... VICTORIA QUOSS was elevated to vice president, programming, international and strategic planning at OLN. She comes ...
Pathfire.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)
Feb 06, 2006 ... Atlanta-based digital media con tent-distribution and management services ...
Sony Pictures.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)
Feb 06, 2006 ... WAYNE GOLDSTEIN was promoted to vice president, new-media research and sales planning ...
Turner.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... THOMAS A. STEVENS was elevated to senior vice president, Turner Regional Sales, based in Atlanta and responsible for overseeing sales efforts ...
Major shows.(PEOPLE & CALENDAR)(Calendar)
Feb 06, 2006 ... February 1-3 The 2006 Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing Research Conference, Camelback Inn/JW Marriot Resort & Spa, Scottsdale, Ariz. Contact: (703) 549-4200 or visit www.ctamconferences.com. March 7 Cable Positive's Benefit Dinner, "Positively Community" ...
Windy City pride.(appointments)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... At the party for Q Television Network's debut of the Chicago episode of Q on the Move (l. to r.): Olivia Alger, marketing ...
The Emperor state.(appointments)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... At Discovery Channel's New York screening of The First Emperor: The Man Who Made China (I. to r.): David McKillop, VP, factual programming, Discovery Networks U.S.; Kelly Picciotta, director, marketing, affiliate sales and marketing, Discovery Networks; Courtney ...
Adding Americana.(FREEZE FRAME)
Feb 06, 2006 ... Charter of Reno, Nevada, discussed future plans--and introduced AmericanLife TV--at a cocktain reception. On hand (1. to r.): Tony Maraggos, project manager for engineering, Charter; Michelle McLin, marketing director, ...
They're with the band.(appointments at RCA Music Group)(Brief Article)
Feb 06, 2006 ... Rock band The Strokes dropped in on the New York set of Fuse's 7th Avenue Drop. Pictured (l. to r.): Andrea Greenberg, president, Rainbow Media Ventures; Fabrizio Moretti, drummer; ...
Laughs on the beach.(FREEZE FRAME)
Feb 06, 2006 ... At the Bud Light South Beach Comedy Festival in Miami (1. to r.) Comedy Central president Doug Herzog and GM ...