Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, June 10, 1995 TAG: 9506120051
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: ATLANTA LENGTH: Medium
Speculation that Atlanta-based TBS would create the network already had prompted CNBC President Roger Ailes to say his network would consider striking back with a 24-hour all-news service to do battle with Turner's Cable News Network.Bring it on, said Turner.
``I'd say we have met and surpassed very strong competition from the day we came on the air in 1980,'' CNN spokesman Steve Haworth said Friday. ``We certainly feel confident we can successfully compete with any and all comers into the future.
``We certainly looked at the entire competitive waterfront in making this decision,'' CNN spokesman Steve Haworth said Friday.
The CNN Financial Network is scheduled to begin programming in January, offering live, global market news, business news and analysis ``in a fast-paced, highly visual format,'' Turner said.
The network will draw on the resources of CNN, which has 30 bureaus around the world and a system of 600 broadcast affiliates. CNN's executive vice president and ``Moneyline'' anchor, Lou Dobbs, will head the channel's development.
The new network will program 12 hours a day, using the satellite transponder of CNN International USA. Though capacity for new channels is very limited on U.S. cable systems, CNN International reaches many homes via satellite.
The financial network would run weekdays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. CNN International's regular format would run on the channel the rest of the time.
``We believe we will be very successful in leveraging the CNN brand and its tremendous business news resources to provide a world-class business news and information service with only modest additional cost,' said TBS Chairman Ted Turner.
``If they compete on our primary turf, then we could choose to compete on theirs,'' Ailes said Thursday from CNBC's Fort Lee, N.J., headquarters. CNBC is owned by NBC.
Ailes' plans were echoed in a statement from NBC Chief Executive Robert Wright, who said discussions with cable operators indicate they would be interested in another broad-based news channel more than another business channel.
Wright said NBC would explore starting its own all-news channel.
John Reidy, a cable industry analyst at Smith Barney in New York, dismissed the rhetoric.
``Basically, it's a non-event,'' Reidy said Friday. ``I don't think anybody believes they have a monopoly in any business.''
Reidy said it wouldn't make sense for CNBC to launch a general news channel solely to get back at Turner for invading its financial news turf. The number of viewers Turner's new channel will reach by way of CNNI's satellite is a relatively small piece of the cable market, he said.
CNNI reaches 3 million households, while CNBC is available in 55 million homes nationwide.
Going up against CNN, meanwhile, is a big undertaking.
``There is a franchise associated with Turner Broadcasting. It's like Coca-Cola,'' Reidy said. ``They've had a decade and a half of doing [CNN] ... and Ted is used to having competition.''
Gerald M. Levin, chairman of Time Warner Inc. and a Turner director, said Friday he thinks the market for TV business news is big enough to support more than one channel. ``Business news is so important these days, I think it's clear we need several voices in the marketplaces.''
Levin said before entering the TBS board of directors meeting where the financial network was approved.
The business news channel was not addressed at Turner's annual meeting of shareholders, which preceded the board meeting.
by CNB