Start TV
 | |
| Type | Free-to-air television network |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Broadcast area | Nationwide coverage: 84.74%[1] |
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Picture format | 720p HDTV master feed, can be downscaled to 480i SDTV |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| Parent | Start TV LLC[2] |
| Key people |
|
| Sister channels | MeTV MeTV+ MeTV Toons Catchy Comedy Heroes & Icons Movies! Story Television Dabl |
| History | |
| Launched | September 3, 2018 |
| Links | |
| Website | www |
| Availability | |
| Terrestrial | |
| List of affiliates | |
| Streaming media | |
| Service(s) | DirecTV Stream, Frndly TV, Philo, Sling TV, YouTube TV |
Start TV is an American free-to-air television network owned as a joint venture between Weigel Broadcasting and the CBS News and Stations subsidiary of Paramount Global. Predominantly carried on the digital subchannels of its affiliated television station in most markets, it primarily airs classic television drama series from the 1980s through the 2010s, with a focus on women-led dramas, police and legal procedurals. The network originates from Weigel Broadcasting's headquarters on North Halsted Street in Chicago, Illinois.[3][4]
History
[edit]On July 18, 2018, CBS Television Stations and Weigel Broadcasting announced the formation of Start TV, with plans to launch the network on Labor Day of that year (September 3).[3] The network initially debuted on the subchannels of five of Weigel's TV stations, three stations owned by Bahakel Communications, 17 CBS TV stations,[5][6][7] and three CW owned-and-operated stations.
Weigel indicated that CBS suggested the idea for the network to allow more modern programming not being carried by cable networks or streaming services to find a place to air.[8] Start TV officially launched on September 3, 2018, at 6:00 a.m. Eastern Time, with the pilot episode of Touched by an Angel ("The Southbound Bus") as its inaugural broadcast. Variety's 2019 Nielsen ratings list showed that Start TV averaged 114,000 viewers in prime time, up 65% from the 2018 average.[9]
Programming
[edit]Similar to its male-targeted sister network Heroes & Icons (H&I), Start TV airs legal/police procedurals and various other dramas - but instead targeting a female audience, featuring shows led by/centered around women. The network features series from the 1980s to the 2010s,[8] and runs a uniform programming schedule with shows airing mainly at the same time seven days a week.[3] Start TV also has a one-hour block of E/I children's programming on Sunday mornings between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. Eastern Time in order to fulfill FCC obligations.
Affiliates
[edit] | This section needs to be updated. (June 2023) |
As of August 2018[update], Start TV had affiliation agreements with television stations in 27 media markets encompassing 20 states, covering 45.52% of the United States.[1] The network is carried on the digital subchannels of television stations in most of its markets (with potential exceptions in certain areas where a future affiliate may opt to carry the network on its main feed), and is also carried on cable television providers through their digital tiers at the discretion of the affiliate's parent station in certain markets. The network initially launched primarily on subchannels of stations owned by Weigel Broadcasting and CBS Television Stations. (In many of the CBS markets, Start TV displaced Weigel and CBS's classic television network venture Decades, with Weigel assuming the local Decades affiliation rights on stations it owns in certain markets where CBS Television Stations owns a CBS and/or CW owned-and-operated station, such as Los Angeles and San Francisco.) Bahakel Communications also contributed stations to serve as charter affiliates.[3]
In South Bend, Indiana (where Weigel Broadcasting owns ABC affiliate WBND-LD, CW affiliate WCWW-LD and MyNetworkTV affiliate WMYS-LD) and Milwaukee, Wisconsin (where Weigel owns CBS affiliate WDJT-TV, independent station WMLW, MeTV owned-and-operated station WBME-CD and Telemundo affiliate WYTU-LD), the network displaced This TV on WCWW-LD2 and WYTU-LD3, effectively leaving that network without an affiliate in either market. (Weigel – which was part-owner of that network from its founding in October 2008 – had continued to hold the This TV affiliation rights for the Milwaukee market after Tribune Broadcasting assumed Weigel's interest and operational responsibilities in the network in November 2013; Tribune's former Milwaukee station, WITI, never claimed the This TV affiliation in the market despite Weigel moving the This affiliation to lower-tier channel slots several times.)[10]
In October 2020, Start TV was made available on Sling TV.[11] On April 19, 2022, Start TV began airing on the Frndly TV live streaming service.[12]
Current affiliates
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Stations for Network - Start TV". RabbitEars. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- ^ "Start TV |". Start TV.
© 2020 START TV LLC
- ^ a b c d Mark K. Miller (July 18, 2018). "Weigel To Launch 'Start TV' Female Diginet". TVNewsCheck. TVNewsCheck Media. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- ^ Robert Feder (July 19, 2018). "Weigel to launch Start TV digital network with CBS Television Stations". RobertFeder.com. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- ^ Tara Bitran (July 18, 2018). "TV News Roundup: Netflix Offers First Look at 'Narcos: Mexico,' Trailer for Rev Run's 'All About the Washingtons'". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- ^ Melissa Hudson (July 18, 2018). "Weigel Broadcasting Co. to launch new 'Start TV' network in association with CBS television stations". WBND-LD. Weigel Broadcasting. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- ^ Phil Kurz (July 30, 2018). "Start TV Diginet To Showcase Strong, Resourceful Women". TVTechnology. Future plc. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- ^ a b Chris Foran (July 19, 2018). "New over-the-air TV channel, Start TV, to focus on shows with strong female leading characters". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Gannett Company. Retrieved August 29, 2018.
- ^ Schneider, Michael (26 Dec 2019). "Most-Watched Television Networks: Ranking 2019's Winners and Losers". Variety. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
- ^ Chris Foran (August 27, 2018). "TV channel-surfing: Start TV and Justice Milwaukee are in, This TV's out, and Movies! is moving". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Gannett Company. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
- ^ "Watch Start TV Online". Sling TV. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
- ^ "Frndly TV Will Add Five New Channels to Its Live Streaming Lineup". Cord Cutters News. 2022-03-28. Retrieved 2022-03-28.
External links
[edit]- 2018 establishments in the United States
- CBS News and Stations
- English-language television stations in the United States
- Joint ventures
- Lists of American television network affiliates
- Television channels and stations established in 2018
- Television networks in the United States
- Weigel Broadcasting
- Women's interest channels