ins AY6 111111111111111M iuminummilikumur11111111111211....i promitralic-mskimicmunimminpammul . _ pa mil mbann- Consumers' Choice and he Competitive Challenge ..--1---Aiummem, ortimmotimmarrift "ilkirs, AmgrAwairstratanimmiximmismaswoaummalimalANIIIIIMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINI 1111111111111111111111111M11111111111111111111111701111 anilMWANIIIIVAIOMMIIINININIMM=IIIMIll11111111111111111011111111111111111111MIllimme--I - , agraffirosmilMINOIla P"1111,11111111 - - ----- 1 ONNOM/111= MP. NM WINN vEllbvPilmr- - - - I _ 's('--"hi ____ II w -___I 7 A Aik -,-----t- Impl-0' INN P' ....e er ) r-- ----- [7_,. - ----.."- Jr ---., - E..; ANTELOPE til ' MHffAi*********3-DIGIT 591 BC075184 AUG97 REG480**CR39 JOHN C JOHNSON KTVQ -TV 979 NEPTUNE BLVD BILLINGS, HT 59105-2129 .4a www.americanradiohistory.com Nothing like it had ever been done before. In just fourteen You can start by buying only the size you need months, Sony created an entire 200- channel direct -to -home now because expansion is simple and incremental. The satellite broadcast center for DIRECTV,® America's largest 8100 system facilitates the integration of new and existing direct broadcasting service. One of our toughest problems was technologies, allowing you to mix tape (your Library the automation and transmission of commercials, promos and Management System"' multicassette system, for example) programs over all those channels. Highly complex interactions and HDD storage for a more cost -effective solution. of constantly changing schedules, resource and material avail- Dynamic allocation of resources provides automated, cost - ability complicated our job. But we solved the problem, and effective redundancy. Spares automatically switch into any we put everything we learned into our new 8100 Multichannel failed channel. You can program predetermined fallback plans Transmission System, especially designed for today's - and for automated replacement of missing material. You even tomorrow's - multichannel and multiple storage environment. have the option of telling the system to protect your 01996 Sony Electronics Inc All rights eser red Reproduction in whole or in part without Mitten permission is prohibited Sony and Library Management System are trademarks of Sony www.americanradiohistory.com What we did was take a 14- mont?; crash course in ?00- channel commercial automation. prim.ir> channels at the expense of a secondary channel. Purpose -biilt User rterfice tools simplify the presen- tation d complex multichannel information to the operator. High y nfigurable GUN give unprecedented control of What we learned the infcrmatior flow. Anc ou- on -line help will even offer suggests; corrective attic ns. W- ether rou start with one channel or hundreds, let was how is make Sony rrke yoi.r migration into the multichannel environ- ment as easy is possible. Call us at 1- 800 -635 -SONY, your job easier. extensi:n 8100 to lea-1 rrore. Well simplify at least one Dar= of yoJr compl 7c wirld. SONY DIRECrv n a regntemd trademark of DIRECT/ Inc.. a mm kYVOrvcs www.americanradiohistory.com Must Reading from Fast Pad( May 6, 1996 TOP OF THE WEEK / 6 Cable: Future or not Cable's allies in Washington are eager to see the business prosper under deregulation. The question raised at the National Cable Television Asso- ciation convention was whether cable system operators are up to the task. Meanwhile, the industry's failure to exploit new technologies is fueling concern on Wall Street. / 6 Gore mixes kids, politics Vice President Gore has challenged Republican pres- idential candidate Bob Dole and House Speaker Newt Gingrich to back an FCC propos- al that would require each TV station to air at least three hours of educational program - ing a week. / 8 NBC's personal `Be(a)st' Thanks to two strong Thursday nights and the four - Time Warner's Gerald Levin tells hour miniseries The Beast, NBC has bested the other networks. It set the record for Larry King that a TW/Turner largest household lead at the start of a May sweeps since 1980. / 11 merger is 'manifest destiny.' / 8 Rebirth of `family hour'? Congress is turning up the heat on content regulation. Seventy -four members of Con- gress last week sent a letter to the six broadcast networks urging a voluntary return to "the spirit of the family hour." Kay Koplovitz of USA Networks says the move "pushed into infringement on First Amendment rights." / 14 BROADCASTING / 17 COVER STORY `Friends' team moves into WB Wrapping up NCTA '96 The producers of smash comedy Friends Cable operators flocked to last have signed with Warner Bros. to build an week's 45th annual National independent production company within Cable Television Association the studio. They now will be able to over- convention in Los Angeles, see other writers and producers. / 18 where attendance set a record. During the conference, industry `X- Files' billboard talks back leaders agreed on the need to fight a "major perception The X -Files is taking billboard advertis- gap" between what cable is actual y accomplishing and ing to another dimension with a billboard the public's perception of its accomplishments. Mean- Larry Hagman that broadcasts on 1610 AM in Los while, exhibitors sought to strengthen the industry's returns to head Angeles. Listeners within a half -mile will yet another pow- competitive stance with various technDlogical an- erful TV family In hear soundbites, music and "hidden mes- nouncements. Cover photo by Craig Mathew/ 6, 32 'Orleans.' / 18 sages" from the sci -fi hit. / 20 CABLE / 31 Telemi No in TV Land peace GI modem MCA and Viacom are suing trumpets orders; HP backs out GI is selling its DCT 1000 modem and countersuing over cable to TCL Cox and Comcast. / 46 programing rights. MCA first General Instrument has an- sued Viacom, saying the nounced set -top pacts with TCI, Cox and Comcast. GI says company is violating the it has orders for 2 million digital set-top boxes under con- terms of their joint ownership tract. Meanwhile, Hewlett- Packard doesn't think the mar- ket is big enough and is backing off box production. 46 of USA Network and the Sci- TV Land President Rich Cronin / turns on the new network. / 32 Fi Channel. Viacom barreled TECHNOLOGY / 51 back, saying MCA has harmed the financial performance of USA Networks. The brouhaha came to a head last week New disk meets traditional machines Station as Viacom launched TV Land, a basic cable network. / 32 automation suppliers are working to connect new disk devices with traditional cart machines and to integrate full -blown New life for cable Deregulation has given cable a server operations with existing automation software. / 51 chance to reinvent itself, says Decker Anstrom, president, National Cable Television Association. At the group's con- Changing Hands 24 Datebook 72 In Brief 76 vention in Los Angeles last week, he urged operators to Classified 59 Editorials 78 Network Ratings 21 seize the opportunity and move into new markets. / 34 Closed Circuit 12 Fates & Fortunes 74 Washington Watch..16 4 May 61996 Broadcasting a Cable www.americanradiohistory.com . i1141t1+t:;..4`,'. b.*íP,. J ,Y r x. !R,;#; .1 i, ..i. i..:hh, ,t4"- , . ,` : ... riyÁ. .; til .1 .. rti11F. .. , rw-: r k.%'. 0 a: . Congratulations r , ° l. ,9!, v :: ` + 'w. .a'` j. ,-J`.¡ y 1 4_ ': .*' - I` IR~i' 461 rr ¡VI Ar _. ;..A. e-;; Op rah Winfrey _',,`` * 114,.. On Receiving ii:,, , The 1995 Peabody Award j4."'c.iT: ,^L +. íÑ_ f; *:¡%.- R . +a, ,-r Mi',.,,Y;.' ¡ t ..... '4,- . 'K ' +, } , ?A"' kti. `ie» i ,. , - :`¡.r , . +,. ,, ,',. `:..to a woman of extraordinary y ' * . ``: commitment achievement who i: {~1i 4' .{,r and +`;; ':;i ..4., +t! " 4 i! . .,' }: tr` i r deserves a place among the greats of ', ..; f444... ji American broadcasting." . : .. ; -'. ' -Tbe Peabody Board . c sR 4 1 ' ! v ¡,`, 4v ' .. - .' 0* _ ` . :,'`-; .`w.`. ° -. * , +y. yi: a ^rtit .? rit'!' f. !' K R ;e,,,w y..' ' ! r .' . .r ,ÿ-t 24*.. H .P _ a ' t sli L{ -.. :79 1g'L°w sJ¡i' 1 ÿ e J `.: "1'¡¡r'.'. {,.s K/NGWORLO ' . e 0'..1 .4 *,L` I`J _ tw -.: !" 2-:..%.'k." .`'i ;.Y A. 1 ; < . `; , 1,;;$ P iw.'. www.americanradiohistory.com `Can Do' Cable Says It Can With skepticism growing, industry renews promise to deliver digital TV, modems, telephony competitive stance with various tech- nological announcements. Four major system operators-TCI, Cox, Comcast and Charter Communications - announced on Tuesday their plans to buy a combined 2 million digital set - top boxes from General Instrument Corp. In another deal, Time Warner and Comcast announced Internet soft- ware contracts with Microsoft. "It's time to tell our story," said Comcast's Roberts, rattling off a list of statistics to fellow convention - goers: by the end of the decade, $14 billion will have been invested by the industry in new technology; about half of cable customers are already served by some form of a fiber -enhanced line; "hundreds of thousands" of digi- tal set -top boxes will be deployed by the end of the year and millions will be shipped out next year, and the first By Rich Brown Despite ringing endorsements of the "several thousand" high -speed cable industry by convention attendees modems will be shipped later this The cable industry has allies in FCC Chairman Reed Hundt and Vice year. Washington who are eager to see President Al Gore (see page 7), cable TCI Communications President the business prosper under stock prices remained flat or dipped Brendan Clouston outlined cable's deregulation. The question now is slightly by the close of last week. "strategic assets" for fellow conven- whether cable system operators are up The cable industry's failure to tion -goers and said that modem tech- to the task. quickly exploit new technologies such nology would be one such important Confronted with growing skepticism as digital compression technology and asset for the cable industry going into over its ability to follow through on high -speed cable modems is fueling the future. "We are going to deliver on promises, the cable industry kicked off some of the concern on Wall Street that promise," Clouston said.