Headlines: Business
Compiled from external media
Rainbow's Ed Carroll Goes Mad
Rainbow Entertainment Services pres Ed Carroll makes an... Read entire article
13 Nov 2008 | 9:00 pm PST
13 Nov 2008 | 9:00 pm PST
Faxassins: The TV Pilot?
Seth and Mike take things a bit too far with this spoof of a thriller TV pilot... or... Read entire article
2 Nov 2008 | 9:00 pm PST
2 Nov 2008 | 9:00 pm PST
CableFAX Program Awards: Best Surprise Ending
It says something about our society that TV gets ratings when it provides cliff-hangers replete with bombings and shootings. What began with "Who Shot J.R.?" continues today. Who among us didn’t watch the final season of The Sopranos thirsting for theatrical plasma? So it was on USA’s... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
CableFAX Program Awards: Best Producer
Here’s proof positive that a great idea, stalwart conviction and perseverance can bubble into magic. The indefatigable Liese turned a homespun project filming 12 girls’ experiences throughout high school into a nationally viewed series that opened a dialogue between parents and their teenage... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
CableFAX Program Awards: Best Use of HD Technology
Sure, hockey buffs get excited about a network that provides a flexible, fan-centric approach to covering their sport. So they’re cheering HDNet’s commitment to updating its NHL schedule every two months to ensure coverage of the most compelling matchups. HDNet started coverage of the 2007-08... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
CableFAX Program Awards: Best Video on Demand Program/Special
As many a dedicated parent can tell you, high school sports is where the action’s really at. So CableFAX: The Magazine offers three cheers for Time Warner Cable for providing coverage not only of statewide championship-level games for sports-hungry fans in the Carolinas but for some of the critical... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
CableFAX Program Awards: Online/Mobile Extras for a Linear Show
A promotion that’s truly out of this world? Travel’s online and mobile support for its Eastern State Penitentiary segment of Most Haunted Live certainly fits the bill, and we commend the network for — ahem — getting viewers into the spirit. In a true testament to programming... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
CableFAX Program Awards: Most Unrealistic Scene That Was Most Entertaining
Let’s face it — sometimes you’ve just got to buy in to a program’s premise to reap the entirely entertaining rewards it will shower on you as the plot unfurls. It is with that mind-set that we bestow top honors on the "Mooshi" episode of 10 Items or Less, that changed the... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
CableFAX Program Awards: Best Online-Only/Mobile-Only Show
Talk about walking on the wild side. The lovely Isabella Rossellini schooled us in a whole new kind of sex education in this project commissioned for the Sundance Web site. Its pop culture impact is priceless. From the actress who deadpans, "I was always fascinated by the infinite, strange and... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
CableFAX Program Awards: Best Actor/Actress/Host, Talk Show
Surprise setups, prank phone calls and hidden cameras reign on Irish comedian-cum-talk-show-host Norton’s extravaganza. So it’s no wonder celebrity guests occasionally duck out of their commitment when they see what Norton is really all about. Shame on them! For our part, we can’t get... Read entire article
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
29 Oct 2008 | 9:00 pm PDT
Broadcaster Accuses ACA of Retrans Complaint ‘Conspiracy’
A broadcaster filed a complaint with federal regulators Tuesday accusing a New Mexico cable operator of being part of a “conspiracy” led by the American Cable Association to file “specious” complaints against broadcasters regarding retransmission consent. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 2:57 pm PST
18 Nov 2008 | 2:57 pm PST
DirecTV Pulls Plug on Championship Gaming Series
DirecTV announced Tuesday that it is discontinuing its ambitious international video game league, the Championship Gaming Series, after two years of operations. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 2:55 pm PST
18 Nov 2008 | 2:55 pm PST
Martin Hints At Fining Comcast
Washington—Federal Communications Commission Kevin Martin on Tuesday suggested that Comcast Corp. is looking at a fine as punishment for filing an incomplete response to the agency's investigation into the movement of analog channels to digital tiers. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 2:41 pm PST
18 Nov 2008 | 2:41 pm PST
BBC America's Ancier: DVR Threat Must Be Solved
NEW YORK—The ability for viewers to fast-forward through ads using a DVR is the biggest challenge cable programmers face—and they must work with operators to figure out a solution, Garth Ancier, president of BBC Worldwide America, said in a keynote at the Future of Television conference here. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 2:06 pm PST
18 Nov 2008 | 2:06 pm PST
Comedy Central Xmas Special Sets Network Viewership Record
Comedy Central received an early holiday ratings gift with its Nov. 16 show Jeff Dunham’s Very Special Christmas Special, which drew a network record 6.6 million viewers. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 1:49 pm PST
18 Nov 2008 | 1:49 pm PST
Vermont Senator Wants Low-Cost Cable
Washington—Sen. Bernard Sanders is about to introduce legislation that would require cable operators to provide local TV signals at a reduced cost indefinitely to people who lose over-the-air TV service as a result of the digital transition next February. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 1:42 pm PST
18 Nov 2008 | 1:42 pm PST
ShopNBC Takes Its Lumps in 3Q
ShopNBC’s woes continued to mount, with sales down 32% and net losses more than tripling to $20.8 million in the third quarter. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 12:01 pm PST
18 Nov 2008 | 12:01 pm PST
Is Internet TV Eating Into Traditional Viewing?
NEW YORK—Two divergent views about the effects of the dramatic rise in Internet TV viewing emerged at the Future of Television conference here Tuesday. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 11:50 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 11:50 am PST
CTAM Chapters Chip In for Disabled Teens, Adults
CTAM's 15 local chapters have honored outgoing chairman Joe Rooney with a $10,000 donation to the cable executive's favorite charity. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 10:58 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 10:58 am PST
Comcast Adds 12 HD Channels in S.F. Bay Area
Parts of Comcast Corp.'s San Francisco Bay Area cluster will add 12 new high-definition channels to their lineups beginning Nov. 25. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 9:01 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 9:01 am PST
HBO Makes Tennis Return With Charity Event
Home Box Office will take another swing at tennis, airing a special live women’s single elimination tournament in March from Madison Square Garden in New York. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 8:56 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 8:56 am PST
Hamilton-Piercy Named IEEE Fellow
Nick Hamilton-Piercy, the former senior technology advisor and chief technical officer at Rogers Communications, was selected as an IEEE fellow last week, bestowing the longtime cable engineering veteran the organization’s most prestigious honor. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 8:32 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 8:32 am PST
Nat Geo Gets in the Game
Some of the programming on National Geographic Channel will be spun into multi-platform games with the formation of its sister division, National Geographic Games. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 8:05 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 8:05 am PST
Martin: Pryor Safe TV Bill Not Good Enough
Washington—Federal Communications Commission chairman Kevin Martin on Tuesday mildly criticized a bill that would require his agency to study parents' access to technologies that are capable of shielding children from inappropriate content on television and the Internet. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 7:56 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 7:56 am PST
CableLabs Recaps Advanced-Ad Interop Event
CableLabs said 15 vendors participated in the addressable-advertising interfaces interoperability event last week at its Louisville, Colo., headquarters. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 7:45 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 7:45 am PST
Fired Station News Director Sues Univision Over Termination
Jorge Mettey, a former news director at Univision’s Los Angeles station KMEX-TV, is suing his former employer, claiming wrongful termination of employment. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 7:19 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 7:19 am PST
TWC in San Diego Adds TV Japan
Time Warner Cable’s San Diego division has added TV Japan to its digital cable lineup. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 7:13 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 7:13 am PST
ESPN Scores With Four-Year, $500 Million BCS Pact
As expected, ESPN has reached a comprehensive, four-year pact bringing the Bowl Championship Series games to cable, beginning in 2011. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 6:59 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 6:59 am PST
PSA Gets DTV Word Out to African-American, Hispanic Homes
In response to surveys which show that some ethnic groups are especially at risk for service disruption during the Feb. 17, 2009 digital television transition, the nation's top operators are promoting a series of public service announcements featuring African-American and Hispanic legislators to inform people in those demographics. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 6:33 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 6:33 am PST
Eckersley Re-Ups With NESN
Hall of Fame relief pitcher Dennis Eckersley has agreed to a multi-year contract extension with NESN to remain as a studio analyst for the regional sports network’s Red Sox pregame and postgame shows. Read entire article
18 Nov 2008 | 6:14 am PST
18 Nov 2008 | 6:14 am PST