STORM2K

Warner Brothers, CBS joining to create CW Network; WB and UPN to cease operations, according to CBS chairman Les Moonves.

What will we do without the WB and UPN????

No more Charmed or Smallville!?!?!?!?!? That bites!

It took me a long time to ever consider FOX a real network. I remember back in the 80's when it first launched. In KY, mostly it was still independent local channel broadcasting during the day with the primetime stuff coming from FOX for the first few years.

I still haven't really grasped WB and UPN has real "programming." Guess I'm old school and only the Big Three are "networks" to me. The rest are just cable channels.

I'm not sure... but I've heard NOTHING about WB/UPN actually going off the air.

*flocks over to my TV boards* There's a bunch of WB/UPN freaks over there.

Got a link to this???

I can't find anything anywhere.

Two of my all-time favorite series were on those networks - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on WB, and "Babylon 5" on UPN.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/01/24/tuesday/index.html

New network to begin broadcasting in September

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Warner Brothers and CBS are joining to create a broadcast network that will replace two existing networks and will begin operating in the fall, Les Moonves, the chairman of CBS, announced Tuesday.

The new network is to be called the CW Network; WB and UPN will cease operations as of September, he told reporters. (Posted 11:21 p.m.)

I still don't know what this means. I wouldn't automatically assume WB and UPN's programming are gone though, but I'm not sure.

The WB Network and UPN will merge in the hope of making the two smaller broadcast networks into a bigger power, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Time Warner CEO Richard Parsons, CBS Corp. CEO Leslie Moonves and Tribune Co. CEO Dennis FitzSimons were set to announce the move at a news conference in New York at 11 a.m. ET.

TW and Tribune have been partners in the WB, while CBS owns UPN.

The two networks will merge operations and programming, with UPN president Dawn Ostroff overseeing the combined venture, sources said.

Tribune Broadcasting is expected to be the primary station group for the new network.

The timing of the deal is opportune for both sides, sources said, in part because CBS Corp.'s existing affiliation pact with News Corp.-owned top UPN affiliates, WWOR New York and KCOP Los Angeles, is set to expire in September, while Tribune has been in protracted negotiations with WB for a new long-term affiliation deal.

The surprise news of the merger comes as the WB Network has faced pressure to perform and prove itself as a strategic asset at a time when its parent company Time Warner is under intense scrutiny on Wall Street and from maverick investor Carl Icahn.

TW has struggled with the WB's financials since the network was launched in January 1995 because of its lack of TV station holdings, which are the primary revenue drivers for broadcast networks.

Sources said WB Network chairman Garth Ancier and WB entertainment president David Janollari are expected to depart their posts following the completion of the deal.

TW president and chief operating officer Jeff Bewkes said at a recent investor conference that the WB has done only "medium," had a slight loss in 2005 and needs more hits and better affiliate relationships (HR 1/11). He also signalled that management would focus on addressing these issues in 2006.

TW, CBS and Tribune officials weren't available for comment Tuesday morning.

x-y-no wrote:Two of my all-time favorite series were on those networks - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on WB, and "Babylon 5" on UPN.

X-Y-NO YOU LIKE BUFFY, OMG.. NEVER WOULD HAVE PICTURED IT.

OK... it sounds like they are doing this, because, let's face it, most nights WB/UPN can't compete with the Big 4(UPN does occasionally beat FOX with Wrestling though), so this will basically cut the shows that aren't performing... and trust me, there's a lot of them.

wxcrazytwo wrote:

x-y-no wrote:Two of my all-time favorite series were on those networks - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on WB, and "Babylon 5" on UPN.

X-Y-NO YOU LIKE BUFFY, OMG.. NEVER WOULD HAVE PICTURED IT.

What's not to like? Intelligent, witty, strong, cute ...

Life would not be good in my household if Charmed went away. One of the few shows that my wife watches.

Blah anyways. Mainstream networks are boring. Give me High-Def Discovery channel or the History channel anyday.

So thats a whole lot of actors out of a job,now Thats show business

x-y-no wrote:

wxcrazytwo wrote:

x-y-no wrote:Two of my all-time favorite series were on those networks - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on WB, and "Babylon 5" on UPN.

X-Y-NO YOU LIKE BUFFY, OMG.. NEVER WOULD HAVE PICTURED IT.

What's not to like? Intelligent, witty, strong, cute ...

I haven't seen Pamela Anderson's new show lately. Now, that is intelligent, witty, strong, and cute.

intelligent? okay....

there's only so many programming hours in a day, so something will have to fall out (and Alex, we're not talking about Pamela here, so relax...)

wxcrazytwo wrote:

x-y-no wrote:

wxcrazytwo wrote:

x-y-no wrote:Two of my all-time favorite series were on those networks - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" on WB, and "Babylon 5" on UPN.

X-Y-NO YOU LIKE BUFFY, OMG.. NEVER WOULD HAVE PICTURED IT.

What's not to like? Intelligent, witty, strong, cute ...

I haven't seen Pamela Anderson's new show lately. Now, that is intelligent, witty, strong, and cute.

OK, you can have Pamela if I can have Sarah.

I'm not surprised at all. Considering WB and UPN are the less-watched networks in my opinion.

That's a real shame. We've watched Seventh Heaven, years ago.

Wonder if we can get another channel to buy TWC? And bring it back to all wx? LOL

7th Heaven is ending in May anyway.

I also think Charmed will end(it's ratings are horrible)

Gilmore Girls, Smallville, Veronica Mars, Girlfriends, Reba, and Wrestling are the only shoo-ins most likely.

Would this really be considered breaking news though??? Just curious.

it was breaking news on the CNN page. Bright red and white banner. It wasnt MY idea....

I just got this from DallasNews.com:
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UPN, WB to form new network

NEW YORK (AP) - Two small, struggling television networks, UPN and WB, will shut down this fall, and their parent companies plan to form a new network called The CW using programming and other assets from each of them.

The announcement was made Tuesday by executives from CBS Corp., which owns UPN, and Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner Inc., which owns most of 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, when 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. including KDAF-TV Channel 33 in Dallas-Fort Worth.

Altogether, the 16 Tribune stations and the 12 UPN stations owned by CBS will give the new network coverage in almost half of the country, the executives said. The executives said they hoped to sign up new affiliates in the rest of the country by the time The CW launches.

Other Tribune TV stations that will join the new network are its flagship WGN in Chicago, WPIX in New York and KTLA in Los Angeles. The Tribune Co. will relinquish its 22.5 percent stake in WB and will receive a 10-year affiliation agreement with the new network.

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.

The plan includes two hours of programs in prime time each night Monday through Friday and three hours on Sunday evening. It will also offer programming on weekday and Sunday afternoons, and five hours of children's programs on Saturday morning.

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

The CW will be run by Dawn Ostroff, who will be in charge of programming, and John Maatta will oversee the business side as chief operating officer. Maatta had been COO of WB, and Ostroff was president of UPN.

The new network gets its name from the first letters of its parent's names -- C for CBS and W for Warner Bros.

CBS shares rose 86 cents, or 3.3 percent, to $26.68 in afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, while Time Warner shares rose 15 cents to $17.24.