Another useless broadcast TV network

[Space Pirate Roberts]

From AICN:

Sweeps Day 22!!
CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, The CW, and …

I am – Hercules!!

Those wondering how America – with The WB and UPN merging into The CW next season – will survive with only five broadcast networks? They need wonder no longer.

Fox claims to be launching a NEW sixth network – dubbed My Network TV (MNT? MNTV?) – this summer. (It will suck up a lot of the UPN and WB affiliates not sucked into The CW.)

Though it will program 12 hours weekly (two hours more than UPN but an hour less than The WB), it will fill the majority of those hours with only two shows, “Desire” and “Secrets,” five-days-a-week hourlongs fashioned after the Mexican telenovelas.

I don’t habla the Espanol, but – Gott in Himmel! - have sampled an unseemly number of telenovelas. Because some of these Mexican actresses make Americans like Eva Langoria look like wildebeests. And these Latin enterprises look to me a lot like … “Days of Our Lives”! If someone can explain how the foreign telenovelas differ from the American soaps, I am one gringo keen to be educated!

Look! A press release!

FOX TO LAUNCH MY NETWORK TV

New Station-Friendly Primetime Option Set for September

Primetime Dramas “Desire” and “Secrets” to Inaugurate My Network TV Debut

NEW YORK – February 22, 2006 - FOX will launch My Network TV, a new primetime program network scheduled to debut this fall. Fox Television Stations, Inc., and Twentieth Television will operate the new venture. The announcement was made today at a press conference in New York by Peter Chernin, President and Chief Operating Officer, News Corporation; Roger Ailes, Chairman of Fox Television Stations; and Jack Abernethy, CEO of Fox Television Stations.

Upon launching on Tuesday, September 5th, 2006, My Network TV will feature quality primetime programming from 8:00-10:00pm (EST/PST) Monday through Saturday, totaling 12 hours of original content per week. Providing broadcasters a viable and station-friendly option for primetime, involving no reverse compensation, My Network TV will position stations with operational flexibility through an appealing affiliation term and attractive inventory split, further building asset value.

Fox Television Stations’ WWOR/New York, KCOP/Los Angeles, WPWR/Chicago, KDFI/Dallas, WDCA/Washington, D.C., KTXH/Houston, WFTC/Minneapolis, KUTP/Phoenix, WRBW/ Orlando and WUTB/Baltimore will serve as anchor affiliates of My Network TV, representing 24% of the United States. Supported with powerful branding and marketing initiatives that tie-in locally, the service will maintain and strengthen affiliates’ community brand recognition with a complete look and feel of a national network that empowers localism.

Regarding the announcement, Mr. Chernin stated, “No other media company comes close to Fox when it comes to launching new networks and gauging audience appetites. Over the past 20 years, we’ve proved it time and again with FBC, FX, Fox News Channel and National Geographic Channel among many others. And with My Network TV, we think we’ve come up with a unique format that will resonate with today’s consumer and a model that can be profitable from day one.”

Mr. Ailes added, “Backed by the strongest media company in the world, My Network TV is a viable alternative brought to you by proven winners who know quality programming. Independent stations are in need of a solid option for primetime and we believe no other company is providing this service to the market.”

Commented Mr. Abernethy, “We’re thrilled to be launching My Network TV this fall. We consider this to be a station-friendly alternative that will deliver more local inventory to its affiliates, uphold each station’s localism and feature quality programming supported by strong branding and marketing. We are looking forward to signing additional affiliates in the coming weeks.”

Twentieth Television’s new hour-long scripted dramas “Desire” and “Secrets” will inaugurate My Network TV. Structured in a 65-episode story arc stripped Monday through Friday for 13 weeks, “Desire” and “Secrets” are based on the worldwide success of the telenovela format. “Desire” chronicles the destruction of a family and the bonds of brotherhood take center stage when two brothers on the run from the mafia find themselves in a heated battle of passion, betrayal, deceit and murder over the woman they both love. “Secrets” goes deep behind-the-scenes to focus on the glamorous, yet sometimes brutally ruthless fashion industry, in which greed, lust and blind ambition surround a violent corporate takeover of the business’ hottest company. Principal photography on the dramas will commence early March.

Twentieth Television is aggressively developing additional programs and proven formats spanning reality, drama, comedy, game, news, movies and talk for My Network TV as the network develops, while also exploring opportunities with its sister companies. The company is opening its doors to all other major Hollywood studios to negotiate future programming concepts. Programs currently in development include:

• “Catwalk” (Twentieth Television) -- The ultimate search for the next “It” supermodel begins by crossing the country to discover 30 of the hottest, hippest and freshest faces who will compete for the once in a lifetime opportunity to be catapulted into stardom.

• “Celebrity Love Island” [Granada (“Nanny 911”)] -- Six gorgeous celebrity and six non-celebrity singletons are thrown together in a fantasy island setting, where a star-studded search for love takes place.

• “On Scene” (Fox News) -- This crime investigative series will cover all angles, examine all of the evidence and trace every single clue of the most compelling crimes committed today.

• “America’s Brainiest” (working title) [Celador (“Who Wants to Be A Millionaire”)] -- This quiz show, based on the hit British program, will find the country’s smartest individuals and reveal them in an exciting format.

• In addition, Twentieth Television is in advanced negotiations with FremantleMedia North America (“American Idol”) on an international format.

The Fox Television Stations group, one of the nation’s largest owned-and-operated network broadcast groups, comprises 35 stations in 26 markets, covering nearly 45% of U.S. television homes. This includes five duopolies in the top 10 markets, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas and Washington D.C., as well as duopolies in Houston, Minneapolis, Phoenix and Orlando.

A leader in the U.S. program production and distribution arena, Twentieth Television is a unit of Fox Television Stations, Inc., which is headed by chairman Roger Ailes while CEO Jack Abernethy oversees day-to-day operations. Twentieth Television provides a wide array of first-run and off-network programming, as well as feature film packages, to the syndication and cable marketplaces. First-run programs distributed by Twentieth Television include “Geraldo at Large,” the news strip hosted by Geraldo Rivera, and the popular court shows “Divorce Court” and “Judge Alex,” the number one new first-run program of the 2005-06 season. In addition to “Desire” and “Secrets,” the company is set to launch the new court show “Cristina’s Court,” hosted by Cristina Perez, in Fall 2006. Twentieth Television also oversees the domestic sales of one of the most extensive libraries of off-net programming in the entertainment industry. Last fall, the company launched the groundbreaking drama “24,” starring Kiefer Sutherland, and The Peabody Award-winning sitcom “The Bernie Mac Show” in off-net syndication.

Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation, is principally engaged in the development, production and worldwide distribution of feature films and television programs, television broadcasting and cable network programming. The unit’s studios, production facilities and film and television library provide high-quality creative content, and broadcasting and cable networks provide extensive distribution platforms for the Company's programs.

Great, not only another pointless mini-network, but one built entirely on soaps and reality shows. I'll be the even tone down the slut factor that makes the mexican soaps remotely worthwhile in the first place. I can't wait to program my TV to skip over it.

[TobalRox]

No one's forcing you to watch.. is it a shitty network? Sure... but don't watch it. I watch one show per WB and UPN, so their combining was good.. but there are PLENTY of channels out of the hundreds I get that I NEVER watch, so adding one more is no big deal. Something had to go in place of all those networks losing out on "content." The days of indy channels are gone (which is a shame since you used to find some really cool stuff on them back in the day).

[Bacon McShig]

Well, it is a perfect strategy for Fox, what with the WB/UPN merger impending. A lot of markets had affiliates for both networks, now that they're merging and only one of those two stations will get the CW, a lot of stations will find themselves stripped of a good chunk of their programming. They'll desperately be looking to fill the holes, and as crappy as this network may sound, it's something.

[Clash!]

So it sounds like its basically going to be 12 hours of new TV, and 156 hours of Infomercials and reruns of Everybody Loves Raymond. Amazing.

[Bacon McShig]

So it sounds like its basically going to be 12 hours of new TV, and 156 hours of Infomercials and reruns of Everybody Loves Raymond. Amazing.

Just like every other network. Even the most prolific channels only have 20-some hours of network programming a week.

[Clash!]

Just like every other network. Even the most prolific channels only have 20-some hours of network programming a week.

Thats not true. Considering I can count at least 10 hours of a exclusive programming on NBC each day. Today Show (2 hours), two or three soap operas (1 hour each), 3 hours of prime time, tonight show (1 hour), conan(1 hour), carson daly(30 min).

EDIT: Plus they each have like 3 hours of local news a day as well.

[Bacon McShig]

Ah, right, forgot about the late-night stuff and soaps.

And I thought local news wasn't considered network programming.

[Clash!]

And I thought local news wasn't considered network programming.

No its not, but it fills up time. MNTV has LOTS of time to fill, and I can only see it being reruns of shows and Infomercials that are already rerun all over the place everyday.

It would be nice for them to play Gilligans Island, I never see that on anywhere anymore.

[TobalRox]

It would be nice for them to play Gilligans Island, I never see that on anywhere anymore.

TV Land stopped? Man, it used to be on like 8x a day. I stopped watching the network once I had the DVDs of the shows I cared to watch.

[Clash!]

Maybe they still show it, I never stumble upon it though.