UPN, WB to merge - form new network

[Lowerdeck]

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060124/ap_on_en_tv/tv_network

UPN, WB to Combine to Form New Network

By SETH SUTEL, AP Business Writer 58 minutes ago

NEW YORK - Two small, struggling television networks, UPN and WB, will merge to form a new network called The CW, executives from the companies that own them said Tuesday.

The announcement was made by executives from CBS Corp., which owns UPN, and Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc., which owns WB.

Both UPN and WB had struggled to compete against larger rivals in the broadcast TV business, including Walt Disney Co.'s ABC, News Corp.'s Fox, General Electric Co.'s NBC and CBS Corp.'s CBS.

The new network will launch in the fall, the executives said, and both UPN and WB will shut down. It will be a 50-50 partnership between Warner Bros. and CBS, and the network will be carried on stations owned by the Tribune Co., which is a minority owner of the WB network.

Among the Tribune's TV stations that will join the new network are its flagship WGN in Chicago as well as WPIX in New York, and KTLA in Los Angeles.

Leslie Moonves, chief executive of CBS Corp., said the new network will air 30 hours of programming seven days a week aimed in part at young audiences.

Barry Meyer, the head of Warner Bros., said the network would be run by the current executives of UPN and WB.

Wow. This will sure change up a lot of things. What shows will be kept, which shows will be dumped? What will happen to all the extra networks? I know that in Hartford, there's channels 20 and 59... not sure which would stay and what happens to the other. New York with 9 and 11, Boston with 38 and 56, same thing.

[Big Red Fury]

I don't care what happens as long as this doesn't affect Smallville.

[apsham]

I just hope that my cable provider replace UPN with this new station.

[Lowerdeck]

Well, there won't be anymore UPN or WB after this. It'll just be this new CW or whatever.

[Pesci]

This was posted in The Ring a few hours ago.

I dunno if it should be moved here or whatever, but there's more discussion there so yeah

[Lowerdeck]

I hardly ever look at The Ring, so I didn't notice

[apsham]

This topic should be talking more about the network\other shows than Smackdown! though, I think it should stay.

[Psicosis]

That has to be the worst name ever for a tv network.

[Carnage]

What does CW stand for anyway? Crappy Watching? Well it's not like I watch either station anyway so meh.

[Psicosis]

What does CW stand for anyway?

[zero]

That has to be the worst name ever for a tv network.

But it gives a mean Spinebuster.

And it wouldn't be that bad if it weren't "The" CW, that makes it sound like it's trying to hip and cool. Adding "The" to things that don't need it is almost always lame, for example The O.C. No one actually says they're from "The Orange County," but when someone says they're from "The O.C." you can pretty much always guarantee they're a twat. Although, I'm not surprised they'd name it something so stupid, when one half of the two networks describes their new episodes as "fresh."