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Oct
31

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Fox Sports Florida, Sun Sports reach deal with Dish

Category: Orlando TV, Sun Sports, WOFL-35 Tags: , , 1 Comment

Dish Network subscribers who are fans of the Orlando Magic and Miami Heat can see the teams play this season. And they’ll also avoid losing WOFL-Fox 35 and WRBW-My 65.

Dish and Fox Networks on Friday announced a wide-ranging distribution agreement for continued access to programming from Fox Broadcasting and Fox local television stations in major cities, plus FX, National Geographic Channel, and Fox’s 19 regional sports networks. The channels were  restored for Dish Network viewers Friday.

Fox Sports Florida as well as Sun Sports had been blacked out on Dish since the old deal expired on Oct. 1.

“After prolonged negotiations to reach a fair deal, we’re pleased to enter into a long term agreement with Fox and to assure our customers that they can continue to enjoy these channels,” said Dave Shull, Senior Vice President of Programming for Dish Network, in a news release. “We thank our customers, our retail and channel partners, and our employees for their support through these negotiations, which we believe resulted in a fair deal that reinforces DISH Network’s position as the best value in television.”

According to the release, Dish will continue to provide programming from the local Fox and MyNet television stations in the following markets: Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore (MyNet 24 only), Boston, Chicago, Cleveland/Akron, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Gainesville (FL), Greensboro/Winston-Salem, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Memphis, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, St. Louis, Salt Lake City, Tampa, and Washington D.C.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Sep
8

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Fox names Dennis Welsh GM for WOFL, WRBW

Category: Orlando TV, WOFL-35, WRBW-65 Tags: , , , Leave a Comment

Dennis Welsh, who headed Fox-TV’s Dallas duopoly of WDFW-Fox 4 and KDFI-My 27, is the new VP and general manager for WOFL-Fox 35 and WRBW-My 65. He succeeds Stan Knott, who led the Orlando stations for the past eight years before retiring.

MediaWeek.com quotes Jack Abernethy, CEO of Fox Television Stations, as saying: “Dennis has proven over the last 13 years that he is a strong leader who knows how to deliver successful results. His creativity make him an invaluable asset to FTS and the ideal person to lead WOFL and WRBW.”

According to MediaWeek, Welsh was VP and director of sales at Fox’s Dallas stations for the past eight years. Prior to his gig in the Big D, Welsh spent a  year as VP and director of sales for Fox station sales in New York.

“I am honored to take on this new and exciting role at WOFL and WRBW and  look forward to expanding the station’s presence in the market,” Welsh said in a statement.

Jun
13

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Birthday time for WESH, WRBW

Category: Anchors, Orlando TV, Weather, WESH-2, WFTV-9, WOFL-35 Tags: , , , , Leave a Comment

Some quick notes from the news that is television …

Happy birthday, WESH. Channel 2 turned 54 years old on Friday. The station went on the air June 11, 1956, from Daytona Beach. Some fun facts about WESH: It was the 19th television station in Florida. … It wasn’t the only NBC affiliate in Central Florida when it went on the air. It shared NBC with WDBO-Channel 6 because most folks outside of Volusia County could not receive WESH, which was broadcasting on a 300-foot tower in Daytona at the time. On November 5, 1957 — the day WESH  activated a new 1,000-foot tower in Orange City — it got the NBC affiliation all to itself. … Of the Big 4 network affiliates in Orlando, WESH is the only station with its original call letters. Check out our WESH history page for more information. …

Fox-owned WRBW-My 65 celebrated its sweet 16  birthday on June 4. It went on the air as independent Rainbow 65 in 1994.  …

I’ve been traveling a lot lately and came across some familiar faces on TV. In Chicago, former WKMG sports anchor Ryan Baker is now at WBBM-CBS 2 as the main sports guy at the CBS O&O. In Norfolk/Virginia Beach, former WESH morning anchor Tom Schaad is the main anchor at WAVY-NBC 10. …

Eboni Deon has joined WFTV as Channel 9′s new weekend meteorologist. She previously worked at CNN International and The Weather Channel — which could explain why she has admirers from across the globe on her Facebook Fan Page. She replaces Ben Smith, who moved from Channel 9 to WHNT-CBS 19 in Huntsville, Ala. (And WHNT is also the home of former WESH meteorologist Dan Sattefield.) …

I don’t write much about Central Florida News 13 — since I can’t get it on my home TV — but the cable station says it will launch a new website soon. “More video. Easier to Use. More of What YOU Want,” is how News 13 is describing its new cfnews13.com page. Stay turned.

Dec
30

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Lose Fox on Bright House Networks? There are alternatives

Category: Orlando Magic, Orlando TV, WOFL-35, WRBW-65 Tags: , , 4 Comments

The clock is ticking, and Fox is ready to pull the plug on its channels on Bright House Networks at the stroke of midnight tomorrow.

Orlando attorney John Morgan took the mammoth media company to court today to try to stop it from cutting off its signals for the cable system. But, according to the Orlando Sentinel, Fox countered that a Florida court was not the right one to hear this issue since some of Fox’s channels are under the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission. Therefore, the media company’s attorney argued, this issue should be taken up in federal court. Morgan countered that this was just a stall tactic by Fox. Read the full story here.

Assuming the two sides do no reach agreement on retransmission compensation, Bright House customers may be without Fox 35, MyNetwork 65, Sun Sports, Fox Sports Florida and other Fox-owned channels as early as New Year’s Day. So, if you have Bright House, what should you do? Here are some tips on how to get Fox channels and programming:

First, if you have a digital television — one that gets HD signals — relax. You can easily pick up WOFL-Fox 35 and WRBW-My 65 with an indoor rabbit-ears antenna.

If you have an old analog TV, don’t panic. All you need is a digital converter box. These will run you between $40 and $55. Click here to see examples from Best Buy. With one of these boxes, you can pull in all the local stations — including Fox — with an indoor rabbit-ears antenna.

OK, so you’re set for all the BCS bowl games — including Tim Tebow’s finale as the Florida Gators face the Cincinnati Bearcats in the Sugar Bowl. What about those Orlando Magic games on Sun Sports and Fox Sports Florida?

To get them, you’re going to either (a) have to find someone who has a television provider other than Bright House, (b) sign up with one of those providers or (c) find a sports bar that doesn’t use Bright House.

For you home programming, choices include Dish Network and DirecTV for satellite. (By the way, Fox and DirecTV are owned by the same company, so chances are you will never lose any Fox programming on DirecTV). In some areas of Central Florida, there is another option: AT&T’ U-verse service.

Like all disagreements, this one will come to an end at somepoint. Hopefully, you won’t miss to many of your favorite shows or sports events.

Feb
22

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Fox Builds New Net With O-Town’s 65

Category: Orlando TV, WRBW-65 Tags: Leave a Comment

Orlando’s former UPN 65 is getting a new name and a new network. Get ready for My TV 65.

News Corp. announced plans Wednesday to create a new network for its Fox-owned stations that are losing UPN affiliation when that network shuts down this fall. News Corp. will launch My Network TV on Sept. 5, and WRBW will be among the O&O stations that will make up the new netlet.

According to Broadcasting and Cable, My Network TV will consist of 12 hours of original programming each week, with shows airing at 8-10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. It will launch with two hour-long dramas, English-language telenovelas from News Corp.-owned Twentieth Television. Desires will focus on two brothers on the run from the mob, while Secrets will be set in the fashion industry. Each of the soaps will run five nights a week.

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