MUMBAI: Foxs new primetime television network MyNetworkTV has secured affiliate agreements with Sinclair Broadcast Group to launch the network on 5 September 2006.
The announcement was jointly made today by Fox Television Stations CEO Jack Abernethy and Sinclair Broadcast Group president and CEO David Smith.
A total of 17 stations covering 11.9 per cent of the US owned or operated by Sinclair will officially become MyNetworkTV affiliates.
These include WTTA/Tampa, WCWB/Pittsburgh, WRDC/Raleigh, WUXP/Nashville, WCGV/Milwaukee, WSTR/Cincinnati, WBSC/Greenville, KRRT/San Antonio, WABM/Birmingham, WTVZ/ Norfolk, WNYO/Buffalo, WUPN/Greensboro, KVWB/Las Vegas, WFGX/Mobile, WMMP/Charleston, SC, WDKA/Paducah and WNYS/Syracuse.
These Sinclair stations join Fox Television Stations WWOR/New York, KCOP/Los Angeles, WPWR/ Chicago, KDFI/Dallas, WDCA/Washington, D.C., KTXH/Houston, WFTC/Minneapolis, KUTP/Phoenix, WRBW/ Orlando and WUTB/Baltimore.
Sinclair is operated by some of the smartest people in the business. Their decision to become MyNetworkTV affiliates further endorses our approach to provide local broadcasters with network programming and a business model required to succeed in todays converging digital marketplace, said Abernethy.
Smith added, We are excited once again to be part of the birth of a new network. We believe that over time this new network model will become a standard in the industry. The advantages MyNetworkTV provides to our stations are compelling, with both a creative programming model for our viewers and a favourable inventory split. We are especially excited about the Internet opportunities that will exist at the local level within this new paradigm.
MyNetworkTV will program 12 hours of original programming Monday through Saturday. Station-friendly by design, MyNetworkTV will enable broadcasters with significant operational flexibility and a seamless flow of original primetime programming. The networks pro-station strategy also intends to strengthen consumer recognition and increase viewership with powerful marketing initiatives conceived to unify the networks brand on both the national and local levels.
