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

[ron2w]

On Pride Vision,

Well they're inarguably ahead of QBID, but if you had opted instead for a play on Pride Vision's launch last September by buying into PV's parent company "Headline Media Group, Inc." you wouldn't have faired particularly well either, even with the intense publicity PV is receiving in about six major newspapers in recent days:

http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=HMG.TO&d=c&k=c1&a=v&p=s&t=1y&l=on&z=m&q...

Some interesting verbiage from the LA Times Article:

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-000031305may03.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dbusiness

"Some U.S. residents want their gay TV so badly that they have circumvented federal law by purchasing Canadian satellite receivers and established fake Canadian mailing addresses to sign up for PrideVision, which is owned by Headline Media Group Inc. and counts 18,000 subscribers who pay about $7.50 a month for the channel. Headline Chief Executive John Levy said the channel needs 245,000 subscribers to break even.

That's a tiny audience by traditional broadcast standards. But in the new world of digital cable and satellite service, it's possible for networks to be profitable with a small audience. PrideVision has guaranteed distribution on Canadian cable and satellite systems. It's negotiating with U.S. operators, but has yet to secure a deal."

And from the CNN story:

http://www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/TV/05/02/gay.tv.ap/index.html

"There's also interest in having somebody new step forward to provide a service like this to counterbalance the power that exists in a company like Viacom," Levy responded. "I think it works for you and against you when you're talking about a big media company.

Pridevision also broadcasts "Queer as Folk" and some MTV programming in Canada. Presumably, for competitive reasons, an American version of the network couldn't. The movies it licenses may also be limited.

Pridevision hopes to get on the air this fall. Viacom offers no timetable. Neither network has announced an agreement by a cable or satellite provider to carry their service."

Of course Viacom/Showtime are waiting in the wings too, but not with 24/7 programming, at least not initially:

"While they wait, Showtime's Wednesday programming block will soon be on the air. Stephanie Gibbons, Showtime's senior vice president for advertising and promotion, insisted this wasn't an effort to test the market.

In addition to "Queer as Folk," Showtime will air the animated series "Queer Duck" and bring in new talent for comedy sketches."

Ron