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Fox in talks to sell to Disney


The Frog

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Wouldnt the FX channel and The Simpsons still be tied to the hip either through Disney and Comcast after the sale? The only tie through new FOX will be the first run on the network ....

 

The Simpsons air on FXX, not FX and nothing would change in regards to reruns on FXX because it's all part of the deal. First run episodes will still run on FOX until they decide to cancel it/at the end of Season 30.

 

Disney or Comcast could pull the show from Fox and move all first run episodes to FX.

 

Neither Disney nor Comcast could pull new episodes from FOX. They can't just arbitrarily pull a show off a network they don't own for obvious reasons.

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I'd go a step further: I never understood the creation of FXX in the first place other than to placate the eventual Simpsons acquisition.

 

The FX network and brand would be way stronger if everything got consolidated back onto the main network. I think if that happens, there's no need to refocus. FX can totally survive without being de-FOXified.

 

Two things though;

 

FX can easily be muddled to de-emphasize the connection to Fox with a simple logo change and that's it (FXX at most becomes FX2). FX has major brand equity built up over 25 years and Disney or Comcast isn't going to change that. And though FXX has the 'it's on Netflix/Hulu' problem with most of its reruns that killed Esquire Network, it'll probably stay; five years of effort to rebrand it (and moving it into double-digit basic cable tiers) would be a major waste with a sudden closedown. A rebrand to FX2 is more likely than anything. FXM truly could go though, since you can re-license those films to a new network easily, or it could be converted like Disney did overseas to CInemagic where the Fox and DIsney live-action libraries could co-exist easily on one network (and Disney would most likely kill the commercials on that channel).

 

When you hear FX and FXX you immediately think FOX. I'm not sure changing FXX to FX2 will do anything to help that. If they are going into Disney or Comcast's hands, they need to change, kinda like when Disney bought FOX FAMILY they changed it to ABC FAMILY.

 

Also, when FXX was originally created it was supposed to be like TNT/TBS, where TNT is drama and TBS is comedy, with FX for drama and FXX for comedy.

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So, one thing I'm wondering is what becomes of FOX Broadcasting after this deal. They will no longer create their own content and will be at the whim of Disney or Comcast as to how long their established non-sports content lasts. It kind of just makes FOX a "programming service" like MyNetworkTV.

 

Granted, the networks buy content from each other all the time, but generally speaking they pick the "good stuff" to run on their own networks first. FOX will get the leftovers from everyone.

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So, one thing I'm wondering is what becomes of FOX Broadcasting after this deal. They will no longer create their own content and will be at the whim of Disney or Comcast as to how long their established non-sports content lasts. It kind of just makes FOX a "programming service" like MyNetworkTV.

 

Granted, the networks buy content from each other all the time, but generally speaking they pick the "good stuff" to run on their own networks first. FOX will get the leftovers from everyone.

One thing the Murdoch's said was that the Fox network post-Disney or post-Comcast merger will be focused mainly on news and sports. BUT the Murdoch's could change it's course and partner up with Sony and stay in the TV Production show business.

 

I don't know for sure what the Murdoch's plan on doing with Fox network after the sale of the other Fox assets

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I can see it now....

 

If Disney gets them, DX or DXX

 

Comcast? CX or CXX!

 

Neither has a good track record at naming/re-naming channels. Freeform???, Chiller???, Syfy??? It would be best (however unlikely) to not change the FX/FXX name or focus.

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I can see it now....

 

If Disney gets them, DX or DXX

 

Comcast? CX or CXX!

 

No. DX or DXX will not work.

 

Otherwise, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, and/or Vince McMahon would like to have a word with you....Sign-Of-DX-Genration.jpg.aa9dc344678283f5feadb5ac5db68641.jpg

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Neither Disney nor Comcast could pull new episodes from FOX. They can't just arbitrarily pull a show off a network they don't own for obvious reasons.

It's been done before. Remember when Spike (now the Paramount Network) took Cops away from Fox?

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One thing the Murdoch's said was that the Fox network post-Disney or post-Comcast merger will be focused mainly on news and sports. BUT the Murdoch's could change it's course and partner up with Sony and stay in the TV Production show business.

 

I don't know for sure what the Murdoch's plan on doing with Fox network after the sale of the other Fox assets

 

There seems to be something going on here that hasn't been made obvious. Continuing FOX as a programming service to appease the affiliates while turning the O&Os into local Fox News transmission outlets seems like a real possibility.

 

Maybe I'll post a speculation thread later...

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It's been done before. Remember when Spike (now the Paramount Network) took Cops away from Fox?

 

COPS was cancelled by FOX which allowed Spike to pick it up.

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There seems to be something going on here that hasn't been made obvious. Continuing FOX as a programming service to appease the affiliates while turning the O&Os into local Fox News transmission outlets seems like a real possibility.

 

Maybe I'll post a speculation thread later...

IF the Murdoch's did turn Fox into a Programming service would that result in a sale or merger between Fox Network and MyNetworkTV? Because it would be redundant for the Murdoch's to own 2 Programming Service Networks

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IF the Murdoch's did turn Fox into a Programming service would that result in a sale or merger between Fox Network and MyNetworkTV? Because it would be redundant for the Murdoch's to own 2 Programming Service Networks

 

I don't think it would result in a merger per se. I think MNT just goes away altogether.

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There seems to be something going on here that hasn't been made obvious. Continuing FOX as a programming service to appease the affiliates while turning the O&Os into local Fox News transmission outlets seems like a real possibility.

 

Maybe I'll post a speculation thread later...

Fox isn't going to simply stock prime-time hours with reruns of Dateline and Law & Order: SVU. But they'll be the only network (such as it is) without an entertainment studio output to speak of.

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I don't think it would result in a merger per se. I think MNT just goes away altogether.

Either way, if Fox is going to become a "Programming Service" time for MyNetworkTV to either go elsewhere or be shut down

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So, one thing I'm wondering is what becomes of FOX Broadcasting after this deal. They will no longer create their own content and will be at the whim of Disney or Comcast as to how long their established non-sports content lasts. It kind of just makes FOX a "programming service" like MyNetworkTV.

 

Granted, the networks buy content from each other all the time, but generally speaking they pick the "good stuff" to run on their own networks first. FOX will get the leftovers from everyone.

 

They might luck into an exception - This Is Us, a TCF TV series, was one of their leftovers, and it's NBC's biggest scripted hit in ages...

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IF the Murdoch's did turn Fox into a Programming service would that result in a sale or merger between Fox Network and MyNetworkTV? Because it would be redundant for the Murdoch's to own 2 Programming Service Networks

 

Television is full of redundancies. They currently own the FX cable channel and the FXX cable channel after all... They could easily run two different services that serve up two different types of programming targeted at different people.

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Fox will still remain a network with original programming post-Comcast/Disney transaction. I don't know why everyone believes it will become a "programming service". The scripted programming will remain, albeit scaled back a bit (Smackdown coming soon). There's no reason why licensing shows from outside studios would cease just because Fox will lack an in-house studio.

 

In fact, the smart plan would be for Fox to forge an output deal with a studio that lacks vertical integration with a network, like Sony or MGM.

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Brooklyn 9-9 and Last Man Standing might be leftovers

Brooklyn Nine-Nine is actually headed to NBC, so Last Man Standing.. could only be standing.

But Warner also sells a few shows to Fox, so I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't continue to do so.

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It will all come down to how much effort and money "New Fox" puts into programming the FOX network post-merger. If they are committed, little may change. If not, then the nightmare of FOX becoming a "programming service" may be a reality.

 

For the TV landscape to work, everybody should air each other's programming instead of what their studio produces. In fact it used to be illegal...hence why Viacom was separated from CBS in the 70s.

 

To sum it up, I doubt we're going to be seeing bootleg "Dateline" or "Ring of Honor" on FOX any time soon....

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Fox will still remain a network with original programming post-Comcast/Disney transaction. I don't know why everyone believes it will become a "programming service". The scripted programming will remain, albeit scaled back a bit (Smackdown coming soon). There's no reason why licensing shows from outside studios would cease just because Fox will lack an in-house studio.

 

In fact, the smart plan would be for Fox to forge an output deal with a studio that lacks vertical integration with a network, like Sony or MGM.

 

Agreed. I hope Fox will continue to air shows that are currently produced by 20th Century Fox Television, but would end up being produced by either ABC Studios (if Disney wins the 21CF bid, which I hope it happens) or Universal Television (if Comcast wins the 21CF, which I respectfully doubt).

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It will all come down to how much effort and money "New Fox" puts into programming the FOX network post-merger. If they are committed, little may change. If not, then the nightmare of FOX becoming a "programming service" may be a reality.

 

For the TV landscape to work, everybody should air each other's programming instead of what their studio produces. In fact it used to be illegal...hence why Viacom was separated from CBS in the 70s. To sum it up, I doubt we're going to be seeing bootleg "Dateline" or "Ring of Honor" on FOX any time soon....

 

My guess is that they partner with Sony, WB and either Disney or Comcast (because of Empire, 9-1-1, etc..) in regards to scripted programming. I could even see them working directly with individual producers (Lee Daniels, Ryan Murphy, etc..) like they do now and taking a small ownership stake/% if a show is a hit. They can't really function as a network without scripted programming. Sports and non-scripted programming isn't going to work or be profitable long term. News programs have never worked (and will never work) for them, so that's a non-starter no matter what they say.

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