Circa Pict. & Prod. Co. Intnl Inc. (fka CPPD)

[skunksyard]

JC..interesting article here on TWC philosophy for carrying channels...

http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/sports/6330224.htm

Posted on Fri, Jul. 18, 2003

New TV channel plans year-round football
By DOUG NYE
Television Editor

DON'T BE SURPRISED if sometime in the near future such things as The Little League Channel and The Bowling Channel pop up on various cable systems throughout the country.

As absurd as that might sound, we should have learned by now that nothing is out of the realm of possibility when it comes to the ever-expanding cable universe.

For example, you would think there is enough football on television with two ESPNs, Fox Sports Net and TBS serving up a glut of games, both pro and college, from late summer to midwinter. But there are other channels out there, such as College Sports Southeast and College Sports Television, scrambling to pick up the leftovers.

Obviously some folks believe we need even more. If all goes as planned, The Football Network will launch this fall, offering gridiron-related programs 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 12 months a year. TFN already has announced plans to provide live coverage of a number of Division I-AA conferences, including the Big South, the Southern Conference, the Atlantic 10 and the Big Sky, and will produce the first I-AA All-Star Game on Dec. 30.

TFN also has signed agreements with the National Women's Football Association, Pop Warner Football and the U.S. Flag & Touch Football League. Can't wait for the USFTFL Game of the Week.

Dan Santelle, director of marketing for Time Warner Cable in Columbia, didn't exactly bubble with enthusiasm when asked if his company is considering picking up TFN.

"You would really have to want to see any kind of football if you watched that one," Santelle said.

"It seems as if there are new channels signing on almost every month these days and, because of that, we've become very careful about what we add. A new channel needs to have the kind of value and merit that we think will best serve our customers."

Santelle was reminded that the South is considered a hotbed for football.

"I'm not saying we would never put it on, but they haven't released any kind of concrete schedule for us to look at. We've just heard their plans and nothing else," he said.

Still, cable subscribers will be able to sample some of TFN's original programming at 9 a.m. Saturdays beginning Aug. 30 on TNN/Spike TV (cable ch. 22).

"Fantasy Football 2003" will be geared toward the nation's millions of fantasy football players. This program will provide news and advice for the players, including roster changes.

"Football 101" will be an 18-week, 30-minute magazine program with an NFL preview, high school football coverage, a college football preview and weekly visits to some of the country's most famous college towns.

Go Climb A Tree Taped coverage of the fourth annual Great Outdoor Games begins at 3:30 p.m. Saturday on ABC (WOLO-25, cable ch. 5) followed by segments at 4:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. on ESPN (cable ch. 26). There are 23 events in four categories -- fishing, target sports, timber events and sporting dogs. More than 200 human competitors and approximately 50 dogs battled for $300,000 in prizes during the four-day event, held July 10-13 in the Reno-Tahoe region of Nevada. Coverage continues Sunday at 3:30 p.m. on ESPN and at 9 p.m. on ESPN2 (cable ch., 27). Mark Malone is the host.

The Iron Man. Fox Sports Net's (cable ch. 31) fine series "Beyond the Glory" focuses on Cal Ripken Jr. at 9 p.m. Sunday. Ripken, who spent his entire career with the Baltimore Orioles, is the guy who broke Lou Gerigh's record for consecutive games played. Ripken and others, accompanied by plenty of action footage, talk about that and other moments from his career.