SFC Alert: Revised Time Change

I will be able to see it, but the time is kinda dumb for the people who are at work.

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Oh, and Mundanes Suck!

" Even though he was smart, the reason he participated in this heinous act was the fact that he smoked to much weed. It affected him to the point where he participated in stupid stunts."
-Thrawn2222 What he will say at my funeral.

That is another reason why I got DirecTV with TIVO.

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Now did Sci-Fi buy the rights to show ST:TOS? I know it was always re-run on FOX or some other regular TV network in the past. Is Sci-Fi now the only station that can re-run TOS episodes? Makes me wonder when they are going to take the leap and buy the Next Gen episodes too...

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'I don't believe in the no-win scenario' - JTK

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Recoil:
Makes me wonder when they are going to take the leap and buy the Next Gen episodes too...

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

TNN already bought those rights.

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KoshN
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Vorlon Empire

"To Live and Die in Starlight"
pilot movie for "Babylon 5 - The Legend of the Rangers"
January 19, 2002 at 9PM & 11PM EST, January 20, 2002 at 5PM on The Sci-Fi Channel (US).
http://www.scifi.com/b5rangers/

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>(Trek)... is being run into the ground. My question is why? And why can't we, the fan base bombard scifi with that question...

Who knows that the fans can make happen if they spam scifi.com enough.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

We can probably make the folks at Sci-Fi really ticked off since they (rightly) pay very little attention to e-mail, and even less to obvious spam. As for affecting their scheduling, bombing them with e-mails won't do a damned thing. (Ditto on-line petitions.)

This is a business decision. Historically B5 reruns decline in the ratings in a given timeslot every time they're rerun. That's the downside of a "novel for television." When people finish a novel, they don't immediately start reading (or watching) it again. So it (and Hill Street Blues, Wiseguy and other "arc" shows) tend not to do as well in reruns as traditional episodic series.

Trek has been on the air for over 30 years precisely because it does still attract an audience (just like I Love Lucy does.) It is a good, solid, action-adventure show with a bit of a thinking man's element to it. It is fun for kids, and nostalgic for older viewers who grew up on it. It is embedded in the popular culture. And you can tune in to any random episode, understand it and enjoy it. (Well, except for a few. )

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>is anyone else as *SHOCKED* that 'Crossing Over with John Edward' is still on the air?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Not in the least. (A) Always bet on stupidity. (B) It is cheap to produce for the ratings it generates, so it is probably making more money for Sci-Fi than anything else they could put in that slot.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>I wouldn't be surprised to find out that Paramount gave them a Very good price on TOS.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I wouldn't be surpised to find out that Sci-Fi paid through the nose for ST:TOS. They were desparate for a "name" SF series to air, something to "brand" the channel with. That's why they later went after the other Trek series, and probably why they gambled several million dollars on a new B5 project, and are looking at Battlestar Galactica.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Now did Sci-Fi buy the rights to show ST:TOS? I know it was always re-run on FOX or some other regular TV network in the past. Is Sci-Fi now the only station that can re-run TOS episodes?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Trek was never rerun on a broadcast network, because broadcast networks do not show reruns (except of their own current series, usually in their regular timeslots.) Your local Fox affliate may have aired Trek reruns in off-network hours, but that is a very different thing.

Sci-Fi bought the exclusive rights to ST:TOS years ago, and their contract still has time to run - so it make sense for them to get as much mileage out of the show as they can. Having just been beaten out on the rest of the Trek series (TNN paid somewhere around $300 million for the set, and will get TOS once Sci-Fi's deal expires) they have a reason to do so. (Just as TNT made sure that got in one more full run of B5 before Sci-Fi took over the show, airing the show six days a week and even running back-to-back episodes on a couple of Saturdays to do it.)

Regards,

Joe

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Joseph DeMartino
Sigh Corps
Pat Tallman Division
joseph-demartino@att.net

First, I'll second just about everything Joe D. said above. He's saved me a lot of typing.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by bakana:
Isn't that the time slot aimed at the "just got home from School" crowd??
It would appear they might be going after a Younger Audience this time around.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I don't think that's the intention. Advertisers pay a premium for the male 18-34 or 25-54 demographics, and B5 has traditionally had an almost ideal demographic profile. Shifting to a younger audience could actually increase the overall ratings but still decrease ad revenues.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by RW7427:
The time that B5 is on is not an issue for me. Since I now have all 110 episodes on tape I can watch them whenever I want<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Which is actually part of the problem. Shows like B5, with intense core fan bases but not a whole lot of name recognition among the rest of the audience, tend to have more problems in reruns, since the fans can simply watch the "archives" that most of them have made or purchased. Add this to the "novel for television" factor Joe mentioned, and it's pretty easy to figure out why B5 is getting bumped even without seeing the specific numbers involved.

The only thing that confuses me about this move is the timing. I'd expect that the airing of LR would give a bump to the reruns by bringing in new viewers and reminding former viewers of B5's existence. Moving the reruns to a less accessible slot just before airing the telemovie doesn't seem to make a whole lot of sense. Had they done this in September or October, I wouldn't have been at all surprised, but right now I think they're shooting themselves in the foot, slightly...



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-- Marty

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR> I don't think that's the intention. Advertisers pay a premium for the male 18-34 or 25-54 demographics, and B5 has traditionally had an almost ideal demographic profile. Shifting to a younger audience could actually increase the overall ratings but still decrease ad revenues. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

That is dependent on a few things we have no way of knowing:
Were they Getting/expecting enough of a rating to Get the premium from the advertisers this time around?
If they Do get the younger audience and better ratings in that time slot, how much are advertisers willing to pay them for That demographic?
A lot of school kids these days have got Money. Or can talk their parents into spending on what the Kid wants.

Or, (Hey, I admit this one is somewhat of a Fanatasy scenario, but what the heck ) someone at SciFi may actually be thinking that, if they hook this audience NOW, 5 years down the road, they'll be the Perfect Demographic.



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The 3 most common elements in the Universe:
Hydrogen, Greed, Stupidity!

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by bakana:
That is dependent on a few things we have no way of knowing:<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

True. But I can guess.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Or, (Hey, I admit this one is somewhat of a Fanatasy scenario, but what the heck

) someone at SciFi may actually be thinking that, if they hook this audience NOW, 5 years down the road, they'll be the Perfect Demographic.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hm. Not entirely out of the question, I suppose... but I think such forethought would be entirely unprecedented in the entire history of the industry!


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-- Marty

Thank God for Replay TV...

I've seen it 4 times all the way through though... I think I'll get the monkey off my back for awhile.



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