Comcast Wires TechTV Deal: Close to Buying From Paul Allen for $300M; Plans To Merge With G4 Channel

TelevisionWeek ^ | December 8, 2003 | James Hibberd

[Timesink]

Comcast Wires TechTV Deal

Close to Buying Cable Network From Paul Allen for $300 Mil; Plans to Merge With G4 Channel

By James Hibberd

Comcast Communications is nearing an agreement to purchase TechTV for nearly $300 million, sources familiar with the deal said Friday. The cable operator plans to merge the network with its struggling video game channel G4.

Representatives for Comcast and G4 declined comment. A TechTV spokesperson said, "We can't divulge anything right now and we're being true to the process. We anticipate an announcement before the end of the year."

One source said Sony Pictures Entertainment, which reportedly has been in negotiations for the network, was the closest runner-up in the bidding. Several other bidders were in the running as recently as this fall. After billionaire and philanthropist Paul Allen put a "for sale" sign on the network, the Greenbridge Group in Connecticut, representing Mr. Allen's Vulcan Inc., received at least four bids (TelevisionWeek, Sept. 22).

If TechTV and G4 are combined, it is unclear what the channel will be called. One source said TechTV owner Mr. Allen may tap former UPN Chief Operating Officer Adam Ware to run the combined network under Comcast. Mr. Ware was reportedly in talks with Mr. Allen last year to run TechTV.

Both networks offer technology-related programming, but the similarities appear to end just about there.

San Francisco-based TechTV, which launched in May 1998 and currently is available in about 40 million homes, has considerably wider distribution than G4, which is in 11 million homes. TechTV has also gained ground in the ratings recently, nearly doubling its late-night viewers with its introduction of a new programming block. In addition, the network recently announced a VOD deal with none other than Comcast.

Los Angeles-based G4, however, has struggled to establish a strong presence since its debut in April 2002. Comcast allocated $150 million over five years to bring G4 to profitability by targeting male gamers age 12 to 34, yet one source said the operator is "losing a fortune" with the network and has already spent $125 million of its G4 budget.

The video game network has also had to fend off more established competitors who have begun targeting gaming fans with their programming. Viacom's Spike TV, for example, is touting its upcoming "Video Game Awards" as the first-ever televised pageant for gamers despite the fact that G4 aired its first G-Phoria awards in August. What's more, Game Show Network announced the purchase of two video-game-related programs from the United Kingdom. TechTV's recently rebranded video game news-and-review program "X-Play" actually predates all of the other shows.

TechTV is one of Mr. Allen's myriad investments. In 1976 he and Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft, where Mr. Allen served as chief technologist until he left the company in 1983. He is the founder and chairman of Vulcan and chairman of cable provider Charter Communications. He also has stakes in DreamWorks SKG and Oxygen Media.#

Jon Lafayette contributed to this story.

[Timesink]

Guess they had to put out a Call For Help! Ha! Haaaa!

Ahem.

[Timesink]

Schadenfreude

This is the New York Times TechTV (I think, maybe it'll be G4) Schadenfreude Ping List. Freepmail me to be added or dropped.

[L.N. Smithee]

I actually know some people at TechTV, and they're among the coolest people I have ever worked with. What's your beef with 'em?

FWIW: X-Play's Morgan Webb is one of TV's most delicious dames.

[txzman]

I agree - TechTV is one of the freshest, common-sense shows on television that delivers exactly what it promises.

There is a reason so many big names were interested in buying the network - it is one of the few with a growing audience.

[Timesink]

What's your beef with 'em?

I have no beef. If they're media and in trouble, they get a Schadenfreude ping. It's not always ideological; I've posted Fox News Schadenfreudes more than once.

[mhking]

G4 is one of the few networks my kids (and I - I'll admit it) miss as a result of having satellite over cable. I've been a TechTV fan since the ZDTV days. They've struggled to find themselves over the past couple of years, and seem to be carving a new niche.

Besides, Michela Periera is cute! (and no, I wouldn't dare let She-who-must-be-obeyed hear that [g])

[dakine]

Aren't you suppose to post pictures after mentioning?..I have no idea what Michela Periera looks like..

[mhking]

[dakine]

Thanks...

[mikegi]

Besides, Michela Periera is cute!

Yes, but she's too cold and above-it-all, imho. I liked the asian newsreader girl (don't remember her name but she's now a reporter for CNN or MSNBC). Sumi Das was really cute years ago but screwed up by letting her hair grow too long. The new girl on The Screensavers looks like a baboon and Morgan Webb is a two-bagger.

[mikegi]

Per FR posting guidelines, here's a photo of the woman I referred to in my previous post (her name is Erica Hill):

[martin_fierro]

I've posted Fox News Schadenfreudes more than once.

GASP....!

[TechJunkYard]

In 1976 [Paul Allen] and Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft, where Mr. Allen served as chief technologist until he left the company in 1983. He is the founder and chairman of Vulcan and chairman of cable provider Charter Communications. He also has stakes in DreamWorks SKG and Oxygen Media.

Aha... now I understand your position on Charter. ;-)

[L.N. Smithee]

Besides, Michela Periera is cute! (and no, I wouldn't dare let She-who-must-be-obeyed hear that [g])

I have actually stood face-to-face with Michaela Pereira, and believe me -- the small screen does not do her justice...especially flat-screens.

[L.N. Smithee]

Morgan Webb is a two-bagger.

Dude, the loudspeakers said not to take the brown acid.

[Petronski]

Note to Comcast:

Keep Call for Help and The Screensavers--don't change a thing. Same for X-Play and Freshgear.

On the other hand, box up all of your videotape copies of 'Robot Wars' and dump them in the Bay.

A loyal, geeky viewer...

[Petronski]

Morgan could kick his ass all the way to Puget Sound and still be back in Frisco in time to write and appear in a dozen clever reviews on X-Play before dusk.

[L.N. Smithee]

On the other hand, box up all of your videotape copies of 'Robot Wars' and dump them in the Bay.

A loyal, geeky viewer...

Amen brother! I was a huge fan of BattleBots (I don't know where it's gone) and actually attended a taping of it at Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay, so I am not averse to the robot fighting concept. Hosting only one-on-one fights, classes and limits on the type of weapons each bot can use, and the lighthearted commentary of NFL vet/novelist Tim Green and wiseguy Bil Dwyer -- makes BattleBots IMHO -- riveting fun (pun intended).

Robot Wars, OTOH, is simply a mess. A crowded ring with robots that mostly damage one another by ramming them into holes, and that goofy, screaming, mega-annoying Craig Charles ("THA MASTA OF MAY'EM!") has me grabbing the remote ASAP.

[EchoLane]

Yep...but that's not gonna stop us from having some fun with their high speed internet!

[FreedomHammer]

Uh-oh.

I wonder if Comcast buying TechTV means anyone with Charter Cable will be S.O.L.?,

I pray not, as I really don't want to lose my TechTV. L.N.'s characterization of the network was spot on. Its the freshest thing on television.,

Oh, and while I agree that Morgan Webb is cute, my favorite is Jessica Corbin.