The FNC Value…
Ad Week’s D.M. Levine gives us a history lesson on how FNC got cable penetration and what it now plans on doing with it…
Paying for carriage had been tried before. Broadcast networks did it when they first started negotiating carriage with cable operators in the early 1980s. What was different about Fox’s outlay was its size. As the USA Today piece pointed out at the time, Viacom offered cable operators cash to carry TV Land, but paid $1.20 per subscriber.
“Investing in carriage wasn’t a new concept,” says Fox’s Carry. “There was a time when even broadcast affiliates were paid by networks. What made our situation so unique was that the price was so high. What we did at the time was we told the competition, ‘This is where it starts if you want to get into the cable news business.’”
Fox had set such a high bar, in fact, that ABC, which was also toying with the idea of a 24-hour news network, backed out.
And then there’s this about the next round of FNC carriage agreement renewals…
In public comments, Carey has turned this advantage into a threat to cable operators. Referring to ESPN, and implicitly tying it to his own network, he reportedly said, “A lot of customers [would] move if it weren’t there.”
As Fox enters negotiations, its executives are keenly aware of the power they now wield. “People may love CNN,” says the source who’s worked at Fox and its competitors. “But if a cable provider dropped CNN . . . how many people would actually stop subscribing to cable? Maybe some. If you dropped Fox News, a third of your subscribers [would leave].”
Inside Cable News 
October 3, 2011 at 9:25 am
Some cable channels are going to continue jacking up sub fees and the ‘cord cutters’ will get the last laugh. Only thing is, the cable companies will make up for losses by capping and/or raising broadband prices.
That said, I do believe the die hard FNC junkies would definitely switch providers if their channel wasn’t on. I know my dad watches FNC basically 24/7.. But, then again he’s 72.
October 3, 2011 at 9:53 am
So,, your premise is the older you get the stupider you get? Do you mock him to his face about his TV news choice or do you just mock him behind his back?
From this vantage point that what it looks like to me.
October 3, 2011 at 10:58 am
Pam, I simply said he’s old and watches it all the time.
If you follow along in the ratings game, its common knowledge that FNC has a large P2+ following.
Maybe its time you get your ‘vantage point’ in for a checkup.
October 3, 2011 at 11:05 am
“If you dropped Fox News, a third of your subscribers [would leave].”
I believe that and it’d be across the age spectrum. They’d lose the premium channel subscriptions, too, so it’d be an expensive mistake.
October 3, 2011 at 11:50 am
They’d probably lose just as much from broadband. If someone is mad enough to change their television subscription, they probably won’t want to pay that company ANY money assuming comparable broadband is available from a competitor.