The FAST rise of Xumo

A FAST streamer aiming to be just more than FAST You’ve probably heard of Xumo, one of those “FAST” apps in the streaming landscape competing with Pluto TV, Redbox, Amazon’s Freevee, and others in the growing Free Advertising Supported Television landscape, with over 190 channels dedicated to a wide variety of genres.  But Xumo is aiming for more as it […]

Disney, Charter settle dispute – but at a price

Disney to permanently remove some channels as it agrees to sell apps through Spectrum in a blueprint others will likely follow   After all the countless pieces over how the Charter-Disney feud could wind up killing linear TV and the cable bundle, customers woke up Monday morning to find their Disney channels back – but not all of them returned.  Disney […]

RCN to undergo name change to Astound Broadband

  Big changes in store for Chicago area non-Xfinity and AT&T customers If you are a WOW customer in the Chicago area, you already know big changes were coming with a sale to RCN. And now, if you’re an RCN customer, changes are coming your way as well.  The parent company of RCN announced Wednesday they were uniting the various […]

Rewinding media in 2021: You just can’t explain it

  Popularity isn’t exactly overrated as 2021 ends a wild year in media Like mystery of the sphinx or crop circles, you just can’t explain the continued popularity of certain things despite questionable changes. After the firing of Mark Giangreco and seemingly public disdain for one of her former co-anchors, ABC 7 remains on top of local Chicago news ratings, […]

WOW! exits Chicago area, sells cable systems to rival RCN

Expands footprint in Chicago area In news that would’ve been a big deal fifteen years ago, WOW! – or Wide Open West, has sold its cable and broadband services to RCN parent Astound Broadband for $661 million. The deals were one of two separate transactions WOW! made last Wednesday: the other was a sale of its Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio […]

Comcast, Marquee reach deal to carry new sports network

Part of larger deal involving Sinclair Broadcast Group. If you are a Cubs fan, and a Comcast subscriber, you might want to send the peeps at Sinclair Broadcasting Group a thank you card. Yeah, yeah I know. In a deal announced literally hours before the first pitch Friday night at Wrigley Field against the Milwaukee Brewers, the Cubs’ new Marquee […]

Marquee signs deal with WOW!

  Wow, indeed: deal with chief competitor puts heat on Comcast/Xfinity In a deal that could put pressure on Comcast, Wide Open West – basically known as WOW, reached an agreement Wednesday to carry the Chicago Cubs’ new regional sports network beginning March 13. What makes this deal important is WOW covers much of Chicago’s South Side with Comcast as […]

Marquee to launch talk show with Ryan Dempster

But here’s the rub: it’s only going to air monthly Hulu becomes latest operator to sign deal with Marquee In an odd move, the Cubs’ new Marquee network is planning to launch a new talk show featuring former Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster. Speaking to reporters at Sloan Park in Mesa, Ariz. on Saturday, Dempster said his new show would not […]

Marquee Sports unveils on-air lineup, programming

New RSN drops details; Xfinity still not on board The Cubs and Marquee Sports Network finally (finally!) unveiled details about the new network to fans Saturday at the annual Cubs Convention in downtown Chicago. Programming on the channel consists of the obvious fare you would find on similar regional sports network channels: Cubs pre-game and post game shows and Cubs […]

Rep. Bobby Rush slams Comcast over Byron Allen lawsuit

1st District Congressman not happy with nation’s largest cable company In a huge broadside against one of the country’s biggest cable operators, Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) slammed Comcast for their role in a lawsuit involving one of the nation’s most successful African-American media entrepreneurs and may lead the company to be broken up. In a letter to Comcast CEO Brian […]

NBC Sports Chicago may vanish from Dish, DirecTV

Chicago to become next battleground in retrans battle between RSNs, satellite providers If you are going to gloat when Marquee launches with a lack of distribution while NBC Sports Chicago is in your Dish and DirecTV channel lineup, you might be in for a rude awaking come October 1. That’s because with the Cubs dropping out of the NBC Sports […]

The Media Notepad: Lisa Madigan opposes Sinclair-Tribune merger

Also: Sinclair passes on O’Reilly; Grim reaper closing in on WYCC; World Series a ratings hit; The Twilight Zone to be rebooted. Again. Given the huge number of items making news this week, it’s time for another edition of The Media Notepad: Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan is among those calling for the Sinclair-Tribune deal to be rejected. According to […]

Boomerang to launch OTT service

The latest service to be featured “over the top” is one featuring several beloved classic cartoon characters. Time Warner announced this week a new Internet-only version of its classic animated channel Boomerang. The service plans to exclusively offer 5,000 hours of classic library material from the Warner Bros. and Hanna-Barbera catalog, featuring characters such as Bugs Bunny, Scooby-Doo, and Fred […]

Comcast, TimeWarner Cable agree to merge

In what can be described as a historic deal, Philadelphia-based Comcast Corp. – the country’s largest cable operator – is purchasing New York City-based Time Warner Cable – the second-largest cable operator for $45 billion, or $159 a share in an all-stock deal. The combined entity will boasts 30 million subscribers when Comcast plans to divest three million households due […]

ESPN, ABC affiliates tussle over sports

Many affiliates are upset with ABC and ESPN over a decision to remove several Sunday afternoon NASCAR races from the broadcast network to ESPN, leaving them with just three prime-time races to carry. The move rankled affilates – particuarly in Southern television markets, where NASCAR is very popular. NASCAR – whose season begins this Sunday with the Daytona 500 – […]