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Author Topic: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony  (Read 4979 times)

snowpeck

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AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« on: November 18, 2019, 05:38:36 PM »
Sony will own 100% of Game Show Network once again. Not sure if that will have any effect on their programming, but interesting nonetheless.

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20191118005828/en/Sony-Pictures-Entertainment-Acquires-ATT-Stake-Game
Co-owner, The Daytime TV Schedule Archive
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Dbacksfan12

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  • Just leave the set; that’d be terrific.
Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #1 on: November 18, 2019, 06:07:07 PM »
Not that they show a ton of classics these days, but perhaps it will provide additional access to the library.  Wasn't it reported at some point that Sony was charging during times of split ownership?
--Mark
Phil 4:13

ivoryman1986

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #2 on: November 18, 2019, 07:35:32 PM »
I don't know about that, but there was a time about when GSN had split ownership that did effect Sony's game shows(limited leases) but the Goodson game shows continued to be shown in full runs and remained unaffected, I'm referring to Liberty Media of course. Of course from the beginning of the network's life, the network cannot survive without having originals on the lineup, same holds true all the way out.

Bryce L.

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #3 on: November 18, 2019, 07:49:42 PM »
the network cannot survive without having originals on the lineup
Buzzr says "howdy".

TLEberle

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #4 on: November 18, 2019, 08:05:03 PM »
the network cannot survive without having originals on the lineup
Buzzr says "howdy".
Notwithstanding the fact that I give the OP any credence at all, do we have any sort of ratings on what Buzzr can do, and do they add people who watch on their website?
Travis L. Eberle

JakeT

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #5 on: November 18, 2019, 09:36:54 PM »
Does anyone think any GSN original has done much, if anything, to boost the network's overall ratings?

JakeT

chad1m

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #6 on: November 18, 2019, 10:54:47 PM »
Does anyone think any GSN original has done much, if anything, to boost the network's overall ratings?
Yes.

The focus of Game Show Network shifted in 2018 to their cookie cutter-ish original programming, like America Says and Common Knowledge. In that year, the schedule has moved away more from legacy programming, and even Family Feud. (The current weekday schedule has an equivalent amount of America Says and Family Feud.)

GSN's overall viewership in the cable TV rankings:
2017: #41 network in primetime / #31 network overall
2018: #33 primetime / #28 overall
Jan - Mar 2019: #33 primetime / #25 overall 
Jul 2019: #34 primetime / #23 overall
Nov 2019: #29 primetime / #25 overall

So while it cannot be directly connected, of course, an emphasis on traditional original programming has been the only major change for the network in the last 18 months. It is very safe to say that in the influx of original programming is certainly not bringing ratings down. Their stature in the cablesphere continues to grow.

JakeT

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #7 on: November 18, 2019, 11:55:45 PM »
Okay, let me try this another way...do we have any numbers that show any GSN original performing significantly higher than the better-performing classics?

Specific programs, please...

JakeT

Neumms

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #8 on: November 19, 2019, 10:45:18 AM »
$500 million? For a network on the secondary tier?

TLEberle

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #9 on: November 19, 2019, 09:12:58 PM »
Chad—do you have data on how the 2003 originals did? I imagine Lingo had to do well to get renewed so many times.
Travis L. Eberle

jjman920

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #10 on: November 19, 2019, 09:21:11 PM »
Yeah, my thought would be that, currently, the originals would probably draw a boost because as Chad pointed out, they've gradually stripped the schedule of different classics. I'd also agree with Travis and go further in that the originals had to be bringing something in for them to continue producing them all these years later. The poor performing ones didn't live on (like 20Q or That's The Questions) and the big draws lasted 5+ years (like Lingo and Newlywed Game).
Me: Of all of the game shows you've hosted besides Jeopardy!, like High Rollers or Classic Concentration, which is your favorite?
Alex Trebek: I'd have to say To Tell The Truth, because it was the first time in my career that I got to sit down while I was hosting.

chad1m

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Re: AT&T selling their stake in GSN back to Sony
« Reply #11 on: November 19, 2019, 10:11:50 PM »
Chad—do you have data on how the 2003 originals did? I imagine Lingo had to do well to get renewed so many times
I don’t. There’s not a lot of specific data from second-run programming, as usually, cable reports only highlight first-run content, unless there’s a specific request for it. We had access to the Sale reruns numbers and I don’t recall them doing much more than 300,000 or so on average.

Here’s a sampling from the week in 2014 where The Chase earned more than 800,000 viewers. The highest scoring “classic”, depending on the definition, is Shop ‘Til You Drop at 430,000 viewers. For anything produced before the ‘90s, it’s Sale of the Century - #85 out of 251 airings - with 320,000 viewers. Scroll down to the bottom and that’s where you’ll find many of the classics (and Mind of a Man, which bombed and was yanked.) Airings of Catch 21 and America Says last week were over 400,000, and nearly 500,000, respectively.

I was happy to provide context to a debate that I have no stake in, but I’m joining the chorus of those who are completely over Jake. I never had an opinion about you one way or another, sir, but your antics have grown increasingly tiresome, and now that I find myself involved in them, I’m done engaging.