[slider]

Well, I am sure Sci Fi Channel is looking at all possible options. It is a very unusual time for the entertainment industry. Peter posted this Variety story earlier today at the CA forum.

HOLLYWOOD (Variety) --- Bruised and battered after a fall season from hell, network TV execs are no doubt hoping 2004 will be the year the Big Six bounce back.

Unfortunately, 2003 was less a fluke and more likely a sneak peek at the pain to come for Broadcast Row.

Forget about the temporary influx of ad revenue to come from the 2004 election and, at least for NBC, the Athens Olympics. Given the rebounding national economy, it's even possible the nets could somehow set another record in May, when advertisers shell out upfront coin for the fall.

These rays of light can't mask the fact that webheads are in for a world of woe over the next five to 10 years.

Consider what happened this fall.

As they have for decades, the Big Six shelled out hundreds of millions to produce and market nearly three dozen new primetime series. Some of the biggest names in the business --- Jerry Bruckheimer, David E. Kelley, Dick Wolf, Danny DeVito (news), Darren Star --- were behind the frosh efforts.

Viewer reaction to the parade of new programming? Overall ratings are down roughly 8% among adults 18-49, more than a dozen shows have already been killed, pulled or pushed --- and, perhaps most disturbingly, not a single new scripted series launched since September has emerged as a bona fide breakout hit.

As Fox topper Sandy Grushow bluntly puts it: "Anybody who says or believes that the network television business isn't under siege has their head stuck firmly in the sand."

There will be more changes in the coming years, as cable nets grow more powerful and digital video recorders rewrite the rules of advertising income. Digital broadcast TV will eventually become a reality, giving auds even more choices.

And the networks' woes will eventually trickle down throughout the industry.

With ratings dropping and profits still sketchy at several webs, the money's just not there any more to make pricey overall deals or blind pilot commitments. That has already hit studios and agencies where it matters most: their pocketbooks. The declining international marketplace and weak off-net syndie landscape has also dealt a blow to profit participants.

There's still money to be made in the TV business --- but those Brinks trucks have a little less cash tucked inside.

I won't quote the entire article to save bandwidth but you can read it at:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...etime_pickle_1


An additional quote from the end of the article, I thought was interesting.

"The point is, this is a business that's headed for a perfect storm," one veteran exec said. "You've got PVRs, DVDs, more cable choices and young viewers who don't know the difference between them all. What happens when all of that converges, and there's not the same money in the ad marketplace there is now?
...

The article also points out the new ways to distribute TV shows like immediate release DVDs, broadband downloads, Video on Demand, and paid subscriptions for shows. Perhaps a way could be found to make different versions for both sets of Battlestar Galactica fans.

As far as the merger news, there was a story that GE NBC was considering a merger with Time Warner. This could have caused the FCC to look harder at the NBC acquistion of Vivendi's Universal and the Sci Fi Channel. However there are reports that Time Warner is looking at a merger with MGM studios instead. I would imagine the NBC Vivendi deal will go through the Republican controlled FCC without too many problems. The quicker Vivendi is out of the picture the better. But your cable rates may be going up with all the mega mergers going on.

I am relieved that Sci Fi is taking time to consider all the options. I hope they also consider some of the new technology that could allow real science fiction shows instead of Mad, Mad House and Crossing Over nonsense.