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Meredith begins carrying diginets


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Meredith has finally decided to carry diginets on their stations. They have signed an agreement to to add CoziTV to 7 of their stations. The stations are WGCL, KPHO, KPTV, WNEM, WSHM, WHNS, and WSMV. They have also signed an agreement with Katz Broadcasting to carry Grit, Laff, and Escape as well. Grit will be carried on WGCL. Escape will be carried on KPDX, WFSB, WHNS, and KVVU. Laff will be carried on KPTV and WFSB

 

http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/83934/cozi-tv-diginet-adds-eight-stations

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/programming/meredith-carry-grit-escape-laff-networks/138986

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I've modified this thread due to the moratorium on "general" threads.

I didn't see the original post but was this set up as a Meredith discussion thread where the only post was regarding diginets? Just to be clear by general threads do you mean those like "Gannett Broadcasting and Digital General Discussion" where they become a dumping ground for any Gannett news with multiple conversations are going? I assume if there is something major (like a merger or large acquisition) it would warrant it's own thread.

 

It seems like Meredith is one of the last few group that are realizing that they can make money using their leftover spectrum. Modern encoding systems and stat muxing encoders are so good that the addition of an additional channel does not detract from the primary program stream.

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I didn't see the original post but was this set up as a Meredith discussion thread where the only post was regarding diginets? Just to be clear by general threads do you mean those like "Gannett Broadcasting and Digital General Discussion" where they become a dumping ground for any Gannett news with multiple conversations are going? I assume if there is something major (like a merger or large acquisition) it would warrant it's own thread.

 

It seems like Meredith is one of the last few group that are realizing that they can make money using their leftover spectrum. Modern encoding systems and stat muxing encoders are so good that the addition of an additional channel does not detract from the primary program stream.

 

In Phoenix KPHO's second subchannel is an absolute graveyard — it's one of two weather subs, and it's the worse one. I wouldn't be surprised if KPNX switches to WeatherNation (it's on AccuWeather but oh boy is it abandoned — Gannett 2008 graphics and music loop, though KPHO's just as bad with a one-minute cut of Enforcer on its weather sub). When Phoenix had three weather subs, it was still the worst of them because KNXV's (which was spurned for LWN) was a weather and traffic sub also on the AccuWX platform.

 

Cozi TV is also on a graveyard: KTAZ-DT3, where NBC probably put it just to claim that the network has carriage in Phoenix. Not many people are going to hunt for a Cozi TV feed on a virtual channel associated with (and almost completely surrounded by for quite a bit of space) Spanish. VCs 33, 35, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42 and 44 in Phoenix are all mainly Spanish but with a few major English subs.

 

-33 is Univision. 35 is UniMás — it's the only Phoenix LPTV I've never seen with my antenna setup.

-38 is a Spanish independent (K38IZ-D). It's, uh, interesting. Tuff TV is one of its subs.

-39 is Telemundo, with TeleXitos on DT2 (as expected) and then Cozi 39.3.

-40 is MundoFox. Ugh I can't stand their frame rate.

-41 is Azteca. It's not even HD. I'm sorry, but if Azteca can deliver HD to Ciudad del Carmen, Campeche, they can certainly have UVM, largely a puppet for Azteca's interests, deliver HD to Phoenix, Arizona.

-42 is Estrella TV. They are in HD but they are not on cable.

-44 is KPHE, a local independent that has fairly high levels of local production plus substantial chunks of Sonora's Telemax network (this has been going down over time, probably because Telemax instituted a BBC World News-like schedule format on weekdays recently; it's also the only US station to take programs from one of Mexico's state networks).

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I didn't see the original post but was this set up as a Meredith discussion thread where the only post was regarding diginets? Just to be clear by general threads do you mean those like "Gannett Broadcasting and Digital General Discussion" where they become a dumping ground for any Gannett news with multiple conversations are going? I assume if there is something major (like a merger or large acquisition) it would warrant it's own thread.

 

The OP originally started with something I'll paraphrase as "This is the thread to talk about Meredith. Let's start with this...". The threads with multiple conversations is exactly what I would like us to move away from, because things that should warrant their own thread don't make it into their own thread, or when they do someone is chastised at not realizing the conversation was going on between three others in a different thread that's 60 pages long.

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In Phoenix KPHO's second subchannel is an absolute graveyard — it's one of two weather subs, and it's the worse one. I wouldn't be surprised if KPNX switches to WeatherNation (it's on AccuWeather but oh boy is it abandoned — Gannett 2008 graphics and music loop, though KPHO's just as bad with a one-minute cut of Enforcer on its weather sub). When Phoenix had three weather subs, it was still the worst of them because KNXV's (which was spurned for LWN) was a weather and traffic sub also on the AccuWX platform.

 

 

When they started the weather sub in 2006, it did have potential. Until the FCC forced the Children's Television Act onto the subchannels, and KPHO decided that Sunday afternoons were the best time to cram the "three hour rule" programming there, where the same shows have been repeating for the past eight years.

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When they started the weather sub in 2006, it did have potential. Until the FCC forced the Children's Television Act onto the subchannels, and KPHO decided that Sunday afternoons were the best time to cram the "three hour rule" programming there, where the same shows have been repeating for the past eight years.

 

That was not a great decision, but also keep in mind that the need for a weather sub has diminished greatly since 2006 thanks to smartphones.

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WALA in Mobile is left off of these plans...none of the announced subchannels are available in the market (COZI was available on WPAN until it disapperead and the station went dark at the end of 2013).

 

It may be a transition issue since they're new to the fold, and may still have a hand in running WFNA (now co-owned with Media General's WKRG after being a LIN station with WALA)

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  • 2 weeks later...

Also notice how KTVK's plans were never mentioned.

 

That's because KTVK will be launching "3TV 24/7," 24-hour local news on 3.2 and moving "CBS 5 Weather NOW," the 24-hour local weather channel from KPHO 5.2 to KTVK 3.3, due to KPHO 5.2 now carrying Cozi TV. This TV moves to a local low-power channel on 38.5.

 

The changes start Monday morning before and after "Good Morning Arizona" on 3TV. Link: http://www.azfamily.com/story/28766463/changes-coming-to-ktvk-digital-subchannels

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Well, Meredith management in Phoenix did launch Cozi TV on 5.2, but "doubled down" on their news and weather loop services by dropping This TV from KTVK 3.2 in favor of "3TV 24/7" (formerly the cable-only "Arizona News Channel") and putting the redundant weather loop that was on 5.2 on 3.3 (with CBS 5 branding intact). I suppose these two will go away after the spectrum auction, whenever that will be.

 

It goes to show that local management still sees diginets as a threat to their main channels and is pretty indifferent to carrying them (unless they're told to by corporate).

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Well, Meredith management in Phoenix did launch Cozi TV on 5.2, but "doubled down" on their news and weather loop services by dropping This TV from KTVK 3.2 in favor of "3TV 24/7" (formerly the cable-only "Arizona News Channel") and putting the redundant weather loop that was on 5.2 on 3.3 (with CBS 5 branding intact). I suppose these two will go away after the spectrum auction, whenever that will be.

 

It goes to show that local management still sees diginets as a threat to their main channels and is pretty indifferent to carrying them (unless they're told to by corporate).

 

3TV 24/7 was COX 82, but now COX 86 and CBS 5 Weather NOW is COX 87.

 

Only WBRZ in Baton Rouge and KTBS in Sherveport are the only other 2 stations, that I can think of, that carry a 24-hour news and a 24-hour weather subchannel.

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