2000 After Backing Fox, Creating His Own
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Cahners THE NEWSWcEKLY OF TV, 2ADI0 & 1NT=RACT16'E ME/I4 34.95 R 0 i DECEMBER 4, 2000 mm.blotinclncem AT &T CABLE FOR SALE? Operators circle broaduand unit spinoff » PAGE 6 o MALONE AGAIN, NATU RALLY At .-(1 Show, Liberty chief defends investments PAGE 7 LAND HO! SEC okays DBS without the 'S' » PAGE 20 o RECOUNT THE SWEEPS! NBC, ABC in dead heat for Must top spot; Fox passes CES » PAGE 32 o PEACOCK SOARS IN Si TU 2000 Revenue and profits climb After backing Fox, at NBC; Jeffrey Immelt to succeed Welch as head of The WB and UPN, parent GE » PAGE 49 Harry Pappas is creating his own, ar+ruaMa+*ar*nrea*41-waa3-DIGIT 3401 Hispani ,hÌihi11t1111 1011w illi dildt,hhhhil BC073184 AVG01 REGB 244 JOHN C JOHNSON PCTVm-TV 263 WATERTON WAY r.'.I4l..INGS. MT 3f10?-7733 NOW RENEWED THROUGH ZOO ON THESE ABC O &O, HEARST SCRIPPSHOWARD, Cox, A.H. B COSMOS AND POSTNEWS WEEK STATIONS! NEW YORK WABC-TV MILWAUKEE WISN-TV LOS ANGELES KABC-TV GREENVILLE /SPART. WYF F-TV CHICAGO WLS-TV SAN ANTONIO KSAT-TV PHILADELPHIA WPVI-TV NORFOLK WVEC-TV SAN FRANCISCO KGO-TV NEW ORLEANS WWL-TV BOSTON WC VB -TV WEST PALM BEACH WPTV-TV DALLAS /FT. WORTH WFAA-TV OKLAHOMA CITY KOCO-TV DETROIT WXYZ-TV HARRISBURG WGAL-TV ATLANTA WS B -TV LOUISVILLE W HAS -TV HOUSTON KI-IOU-TV ALBUQUERQUE KOAT-TV SEATTLE KI NG-TV JACKSONVILLE W JXT-TV CLEVELAND WEWS-TV FRESNO /VISALIA KFS N-TV PHOENIX KTVK-TV AUSTIN KVU E-TV PITTSBURGH WTAE-TV TULSA KOTV-TV ORLANDO WFTV-TV TOLEDO WTO L- TV PORTLAND, OR KG W-TV DES MOINES KCCI-TV BALTIMORE W BAL-TV SPOKANE KRE M-TV CHARLOTTE WS OC-TV BURLINGTON / PLATTS WPTZ-TV RALEIGH /DURHAM WTVD-TV SALINAS /MONTEREY KS BW-TV KANSAS CITY KM BC-TV BOISE KTVB -TV CINCINNATI WC PO-TV WHEELING /STEUBEN. WTOV-TV DISTRIBUTION AND PRODUCED BY MEDIA SALES BY KINGW 02000 King World. All Rights Reserved. THE FRANCHISE CONTINUES... BROADCASTING CABLE {www.broadcastingcable.com} Volume 130 Number 50 Top of the Week December 4, 2000 UP FOR GRABS? AT &T split has MSOs drooling over broadband unit. » 6 COVER STORY DEFENDING LIBERTY John Malone talks about his company's investments and ROOM FOR AT &T Broadband's prospects. » 7 FROM THE WESTERN SHOW A ONE MORE? shrinking industry and exiting exhibitors Betting big Harry Pappas takes on but techies step in. 13 leave gaps, » Univision and Telemundo with a network for the fast- growing Hispanic community. » 26 AUDIOTAPE AT NOON Supreme Court speeds audio release but stands fine against live coverage. » 15 AT &T's Dan Somers mounts his defense. VOTER NEWS SNAFU VNS takes more heat for networks' election -night debacle. » 16 SHARE THE JOY Rebounding WB renews nearly every show on its schedule. » 17 LAND -BASED WAR FCC approval of terrestrial direct -broadcast service draws fire. » 20 NO- CONFIDENCE VOTE? Guessing continues Antier, Sassa: Chilly? over job security of NBCs Garth Antier. » 21 Programming turn off 'illegal' subs -yet. » 55 Another dead heat? In November sweeps, Pole appeal NCTA, FCC take pole-attachment NBC ties ABC in total viewers. » 33 ruling to the Supreme Court. » 56 All the science that's fit to air Nat Geo Access argument NCTA says the market will and New York Times team up. » 34 open cable networks to ISPs. » 58 Jockeying for time Syndicated shows lock B &C Eye 4 up time slots for 2001. » 36 Interactive Media Broadcast Ratings 48 No- nonsense women Newly renamed Streaming maybe Cable execs on Western Cable Ratings 46 Romance Classics sheds its hearts- and -flowers Show panel debate value of delivering video Changing Hands 52 image. » 38 over the Internet. » 58 Classifieds 77 Waay out west Rebranded TNN turns to Star Venturing Liberate launches $50M fund to Common Ground 65 Trek to attract new audience. » 42 drive interactive content. » 62 Datebook 70 Enhancing entertainment CBS plans inter- Editorials 86 Business active efforts with prime time shows. » 62 Facetime 71 Good news from NBC GE Chairman -elect Fates & Fortunes 72 Jeffrey Immelt Likes what he sees. » 49 Technology Fifth Estater 76 Doubting digital Hollywood execs on Rethinking ReplayTV Personal TV supplier Financial Wrap -Up 12 Western Show panel wonder where shifts focus to licensing. » 66 Jessell's Column 22 Station Break 40 new-technology profit is. » 42 News delivery Fledgling company uses Telestream IP -based system. » 67 Syndication Ratings 41 Two Cents 85 Washington Cable labels NCTA asks FCC to reconsider IDs Stay of cutoff EchoStar doesn't have to for cable -compatible digital Ns. » 68 Broadcasting & Cable /12 -4 -00 3 EYE ADVERTISING FCC raises Ghost town.com Last year's Super Bowl had something like 19 dotcom advertisers. SYNDICATION red flag Then the bottom feh l out. Appropriately this year, for one returning advertiser, E- trade.com, Silicon Valley will look more like Death Ricki Lake Cumulus Media's acquisition of Valley. five radio stations in the We hear that for one of the E-trade.com spots being shot for the en Español.? Bismarck, N.D., area will be big game, the online brokerage shows a series of vacant buildings, Harris Salomon (producer of Dr. reviewed by an FCC administrative supposedly once occupied by Web start -ups, now cobwebbed and Ruth's and Joan Lunden's talk law judge this week. The sale is empty. A wrecking ball crashes into the desolate headquarters of a shows), thinks he has the next the first radio deal designated for defunct dotcom, and along with debris, out flies an object that looks break -out talk hit in Latin pop a hearing since the agency began like the Sock Puppet -all that remains of Pets.com. singer Melina. The 23- year-old "red flagging" mergers that result newcomer will be in a Miami stu- in heavy market concentration. dio this week making a pilot The commissioners will order the aimed at young Latinas. "It will review at their monthly meeting be similar in scope and style to Thursday. Ricki Lake, except in Spanish," With the purchase from says Salomon. Anderson Broadcasting, Cumulus "There are very few Spanish would own nine stations in the shows geared to younger Bismarck area. Cumulus currently women and we think there operates the Anderson stations E- trade.com has I an interesting should be a show like Ricki under a management agreement. Super Bowl plan Lake that deals domestically Since August 1998, the FCC has for this familiar looking doggy. with this underserved audi- sought public comment on radio ence." The show is being deals that lead to one or two pitched to Univision, companies dominating a market. Telemundo and the new Deals are flagged when one Azteca America network. company would have 50% or more of radio ad revenue or two companies would share 70°h. Radio owners have complained MEDIA'S OWN RECOUNT discovered some licenses had been counted twice. the FCC has no policy for resolv- Just two weeks after BC Eye reported the FCC's ing red flags and has accom- broadcast station total list hadn't been updated SUN MICROSYSTEM'S FAUX FLIPPER plished little other than delay- for a year, the commission has resumed its Arguably the most arresting sight on the ing mergers. monthly update. According to the FCC there are Western Cable Show's exhibition floor last week Also next week the FCC is now 12,717 radio stations (4,685 AM, 5,892 FM was Sun Microsystem's giant water tank and scheduled to alter the way it and 2,140 educational), 1,663 full-power TV, and dolphin. Booth workers were peppered with 2,388 low -power TV. The number complaints, and attendees called county animal defines radio markets. Some of stations increased from a year ago in all categories except control over the 7- foot -long dolphin in a tank commissioners have complained AM, where there was a decline of 98. That doesn't about three times the size of a coffin. It took that the current policy allows mean the number of AM outlets is going down, people a while to realize that Flipper was not owners to control more outlets says FCC audio -services division chief, Linda Blair. real, but a rubber animatronic critter controlled in a market than intended by The FCC just finished a review of its database and by two guys sitting off to the side. FCC rules. 4 Broadcasting & Cable /12 -4 -00 On November 26th over 95 000 women called to request Lifetime Movie Network. When Lifetime ran a sneak preview of Lifetime Movie Network, the results were amazing, but not surprising. Lifetime Movie Network is women's #1 choice among all emerging and mid -sized networks... ** Shouldn't it be yours? NOVEMBER 26TH SNEAK PREVIEW HOSTED BY TRACEY GOLD Call your account representative for more information. New York: (212) 424 -7000 Dallas: (972) 458 -4600 Los Angeles: (310) 556 -7500 Lifetime MOVIE NETWORK "" www.lifetimetv.com tn. LIfETIME ENTER.AINNERT SERVICES 'SOURCE: KALEIDOSCOPE PROMOTONS, INC. 11/26/00 "SOURCE. NOVEMBER 2000 BETA RESEARCH CABLE SUBSCRIBER STUDY-INTEREST IN MID -SIZED/EMERGING NETWORKS TOP OF THE WEEK Spending $120 billion - before selling off billions in stray assets-AT &T was making AT &T such a huge commitment to cable that few for sale? expected the company ever to exit the mar- ket. Many rival MSOs think spinning off cable unit is inevitable But sliding cable cash flow, the acceler- ating decline of AT &T's By John M. Higgins core long -distance busi- espite AT &T Corp.