NEW NETWORKS GET FIRST CRACK AT TV CRITICS; POTENTIAL STRIKE IS ISSUE
PASADENA -- Threatened strike against TV networks this spring by Writers Guild of America (WGA) and other unions (see separate item, this issue) was a major topic of conversation here as Pax TV, UPN and WB kicked off semiannual round of questions and answers with TV critics. “Everyone that’s involved on both sides says there’s going to be a strike,” WB CEO Jamie Kellner said. “I have no involvement whatsoever, so I say there’s not going to be a strike. I think there’s going to be a lot of reasons to avoid a strike.” He and UPN executives said they had contingency plans in place in case there was strike, including at least 4 “reality” programs under development by WB, plus advantage of being able to add movie night by using affiliate Turner Bcstg.’s huge library of films.
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UPN Pres. Dean Valentine said reality shows were “a useful tool to have should a strike occur [but] we really began developing reality because we always believe” in that programming genre. But, he said, they're not really intended as strike protection. Reality shows are “easier and cheaper to produce… and they seem to appeal to a larger percentage of our younger demographics.” On strike possibility, Pax TV’s Jeff Sagansky didn’t mention reality shows but, said: “We're trying to get ahead in the scripts, but we're largely going to be unaffected no matter what.”
UPN officials were very upbeat about keeping 8 Chris-Craft (C-C) (co-founder of network) TV stations as affiliates after their purchase by Fox TV Stations is approved by FCC. “It’s fair to say we are pretty close to a deal,” Valentine said, but “we're not there yet. We are very optimistic that it will happen.” UPN affiliation agreements with C-C stations expire Jan. 15 and proposed new deals are said to be for 3 years. Adam Ware, UPN COO, said negotiations were “in the last inches of the last mile.” Name change of UPN to Paramount TV, announced last summer, has been put on hold, Valentine said, but “it doesn’t mean that we're not going to eventually call ourselves Paramount.”
While UPN executives insisted fledgling network would continue under CBS-Viacom ownership, Valentine said opportunity was there but there would be little crossplay between 2 networks in programming because “our audiences are so radically different. [CBS] is a much, much older network in terms of viewers and there are very few of the people that we want to reach that are watching their air.” Entertainment Pres. Thomas Nunan said 2000 fall season was UPN’s best ever with ratings continuing to grow as other networks’ audiences declined. “We're the only network who can make that claim,” he said, “not just among the little guys but among all 6 [leaving out Pax] broadcast network.”
Kellner said that it no longer was fair to label WB “the teeny-bopper network,” that WB had done “exactly what we set out to do” by delivering “high concentrations” of adults 18-34, while “we really never want to lose that special place we have with teens.” Responding to Nunan’s claim, Kellner said Nielsen “dramatically distorts” ratings by including WWF wrestling in UPN’s results. “They [UPN] don’t sell the time” in wrestling, he said, in urging critics to do their own ratings breakout of UPN. On reality programming, he said industry was in “the middle of a cycle… The good stuff will shine and the bad stuff will drop to the bottom quickly.” Entertainment Pres. Susanne Daniels said WB had 4 reality shows in production, including Pop Stars, which was subject of panel for critics -- “at least a minimum of a third of what the other networks are doing.”
AOL takeover of Time Warner will help WB by providing “synergy” in many areas, Kellner said, but “issues like the Internet where there’s supposed to be a pot of gold is at least 5 years away.” So why, he asked, were writers and actors threatening to strike over nonexistent revenues from Internet.
“This network’s exactly what the government and the country have talked about -- less violence, more family values,” Sagansky said of Pax TV. It’s working with 1/3 owner NBC in many ways, “and right now the relationship is fantastic… and I think it’s going to grow,” he said. The 2 networks are working together “much closer this year in terms of program planning.” In 2001, he said, “we're going to come close to breaking even and next year we'll make money.” Launched with off-network programming, he said Pax TV wasn’t buying anymore: “It’s going to be an original program service just like all the other guys.” NBC, he said, had no “operating control… they're sort of our sister network.” But, Sagansky said, “I will say that I look to them [NBC]. If there’s a really expensive piece of development, I'll go to them and say: ‘Hey, we can’t afford to make this ourselves. Will you guys come in with us?'” Currently, there are joint NBC-Pax projects in development, he said.