{"id":4220,"date":"2012-09-18T20:21:26","date_gmt":"2012-09-19T00:21:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bejone03.expressions.syr.edu\/trf235\/?p=4220"},"modified":"2012-12-21T00:27:59","modified_gmt":"2012-12-21T05:27:59","slug":"ion-media-bailey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bejone03.expressions.syr.edu\/trf235\/2012\/09\/18\/ion-media-bailey\/","title":{"rendered":"Ion Media Networks"},"content":{"rendered":"
by Bailey Normann<\/pre>\n
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Picture courtesy of Ion Media Networks [5]<\/p><\/div>\n
601 Clearwater Park Rd.
\nWest Palm Beach, FL, 33401 United States
\n(561) 659-4122<\/p>\n
About<\/strong><\/p>\n
Originally founded as Paxson Communications in 1991, ION Media Networks was officially established in 2006 and has since made great lengths in all of its key areas including: general entertainment television, special interest television, and mobile television. ION is a leading American television provider and brings their content to nearly 260 million Americans. They deliver their entertainment \u201cthrough innovation, offering quality content, new formats and innovative packages that are affordable and accessible to all consumers\u201d [5]. At its helm is CEO and Chairman Brandon Burgess along with Chris Addeo in Marketing, Douglas Holloway in Distribution, and Jeff Quinn in Finance. Under the ION Media Networks Inc. flagship is ION Television, Qubo, and ION Life.<\/p>\n
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Photo Courtesy of Ion Media Networks [1]<\/p><\/div>
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Photo Courtesy of Ion Media Networks [5]<\/p><\/div> <\/p>\n
Holdings<\/strong><\/p>\n
Under the networks\u2019 \u201cPositively Entertaining\u201d brand, ION Television<\/a> offers an array of blockbuster movie titles, hit shows in syndication, and more recently, a jump into original content. The network reaches more than 1oo million US Homes and boasts it is \u201cthe only entertainment network with double-digit growth\u201d [11]. It is available through all major distribution companies and is one of the fastest growing networks in America.<\/p>\n
Qubo<\/a>, ION\u2019s \u201cGood Fun\u201d children\u2019s network provides a safe space for childhood and adult viewing. It functions to provide content for preschoolers to tweens and tries to promote good role models and values in order to create more constructive members of society. It has also received numerous awards for its healthy programming and fight against childhood obesity. It has been recognized as the \u201cGold Standard\u201d in kid\u2019s television by the FCC and was also voted as \u201cone of the more trustworthy sources for children\u2019s programming\u201d by the U.S. Government Accountability Office [12].<\/p>\n
ION\u2019s final special interest television venture is ION Life<\/a>, a lifestyle channel that is<\/p>\n
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Photo courtesy of Ion Media Networks<\/p><\/div>\n
committed to offering programming that promotes healthy and active individuals. Its programs focus on such topics as relationships, inspirational stories, adventure, and home design. It is available 24\/7 and is distributed over-the-air and through cable and satellite providers.<\/p>\n
Financials<\/strong><\/p>\n
In May of 2009, ION Media Networks hit a serious road block.\u00a0 Under the deal of a restructuring agreement with a group of debt holders whom promised they would make its debt into equity, the network filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. With more than a billion dollars in liabilities and ten million in assets, ION rebuilt with a 150 million dollar funding commitment. However, by October of 2010, ION had resurrected from the ashes of bankruptcy. \u201cPer Nielsen ratings data, ION Television averaged 1.12 million viewers in the third quarter of 2010, an improvement of 94 percent versus the year-ago period\u201d [1]. This spur in growth is most attributed to the networks\u2019 acquisition of shows such as Criminal Minds and Without a Trace and \u201cfrom October 2009 through September 2010, ION has<\/p>\n
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Douglas Holloway – President of Multichannel Distribution
Photo courtesy of S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications [15]<\/p><\/div>\n
grown its overall sales prime deliveries 72 percent to 1.01 million viewers, while improving 74 percent among adults 25-54 (450,000), and nearly doubling its delivery of viewers 18-49 (392,000 versus 205,000 in the year-ago period)\u201c [1]. Although ION is a private company and therefore does not publish their financial reports to the public, in a talk earlier this month, ION’s President of Multichannel Distribution confirmed that the company is continuing on its up-hill climb.<\/p>\n
In the News<\/strong><\/p>\n
ION is also a leader in developing the future of mobile television and \u201cco-founded the industry initiative to develop Mobile DTV technology in record time\u201d [5]. This initiative, the Mobile Content Venture, or MVC for short, was also headed by NBCUniversal and Fox. In order to \u201cmobolize\u201d this project, these broadcasters plan to use the Dyle<\/a> mobile TV service. Dyle mobile TV is working to turn Android and iOS devices into portable televisions and will allow customers to view local broadcast channels such as ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Quobo, Telemundo, and Univision. However, this program is not yet covered in all markets. In a presentation this month at Syracuse University\u2019s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, ION\u2019s President of Multichannel Distribution, Douglas Holloway, expressed qualms about Dyle\u2019s business model, which at the moment will be entirely based on advertising. Holloway also expressed his concerns about his company\u2019s failure to move at a fast enough rate with the expanding mobile TV platform. He said that creating their own distributable platforms are at the moment nearly impossible. This is mainly due to the fact that ION television is entirely syndication based.<\/p>\n
Continuing to strengthen its syndicated content, ION Television announced its acquisition of \u201cLaw & Order: Criminal Intent,\u201d in early August of 2012.\u00a0 This off-networking licensing agreement has given the network the rights to all 10 seasons including all 195 episodes [7]. Similarly, in the same month, ION also acquired the off-net rights to all six seasons of the CBS procedural drama “Numb3rs,” which fits in perfectly with the networks’ crime drama line up [14].<\/p>\n
In late September, ION Television announced what would be their most successful programming of the fall season. On October 3rd<\/sup>, the network premiered the first match of the new WWE Main Event series. The new show was promoted with several promo ads<\/a>, \u201cfeaturing the WWE Superstars and Divas of Monday Night Raw and Friday Night Smackdown\u201d [9]. The series will premiere live events that are filmed across the country, including an international matchup in Europe. Since its debut, WWE Main Event has been a serious contender in television ratings. Up against a presidential debate on its premiere night, this program, according to Nielson, \u201cgarnered the highest male audience in the last year with the most Men 18-49 (422,000), Men 25-54 (444,000), and Men 2+ (876,000)\u201d and was also the #4 program on television among Men 18-49. [9]. This beat not only the male audience watching the presidential debate, but it also beat out ESPN and ESPN2 on the last MLB regular season game. CEO Brandon Burgess describes, \u201c\u2019Fans of the WWE are passionate and seem to have a knack for finding their favorite Superstars wherever they live. Needless to say, we are particularly pleased that WWE has found a new home on ION Television, and we congratulate our new partner in the success of the premiere\u2019” [9]. Vince McMahon , CEO and Chairman of WWE, responded, \u201c\u2019We expect our fans will make WWE Main Event<\/em> the number one show on the network as they have done for WWE programs with all of our other TV partners\u2019\u201d[9].<\/p>\n
On October 9, it was announced that ION had created a new and much longer-term partnership with DIRECTV, a leader in digital entertainment service providers. This has extended ION Television\u2019s contract with the provider for many years to come. Also, for the first time, the network will be offered in high-definition on DIRECTV and will also be available nationwide, from East Coast to West Coast.<\/p>\n