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Retro Television Network
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The Retro Television Network (RTN) is a system of television stations primarily airing classic television programming from the 1950s through the 1980s, such as Leave it to Beaver, Kojak, McHale's Navy, Adam-12, Emergency!, and The Rockford Files. Schedules for some markets are customized to avoid conflicts for series with an existing station with a contract to air a program in that market. The network is specifically designed to air on a digital subchannel for a local broadcast station, allowing channels an easy way to expand their programming options.
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The Retro Television Network (RTN) is a system of television stations primarily airing classic television programming from the 1950s through the 1980s, such as Leave it to Beaver, Kojak, McHale's Navy, Adam-12, Emergency!, and The Rockford Files. Schedules for some markets are customized to avoid conflicts for series with an existing station with a contract to air a program in that market. The network is specifically designed to air on a digital subchannel for a local broadcast station, allowing channels an easy way to expand their programming options. With the 2009 switch to digital television drawing closer, RTN has added many affiliates in 2007 and 2008.
Concept
The network is similar in concept to the original idea behind cable network TV Land, which in recent years has shown more recent off-network programming and even some original programming, similar to that of Nick at Nite. (Ironically, TV Land was a spin-off of Nick at Nite when Nick at Nite itself started to show more recent programming.) However, Retro Television Network takes the nostalgia a step further, by showing very old commercials and limiting the time spent on breaks during a program, as commercial breaks were much shorter from the late 1940s to the late 1960s than they have been since then.
The network's primary focus, as of 2008, is its new "Classic Hits All Day - Fresh Talk All Night" format. The network airs classic television programming in the morning, afternoon, evening, and prime-time hours - and airs various talk programs, most notably its original program "Unreliable Sources", in the late-night hours. This began in July of 2008. Previously, the station aired infomercials in the late night and early morning hours. (Actual programming may vary by station.)
Acquisition by Luken Communications
In June 2008, after many financial troubles facing its parent company, RTN was sold by Equity Media Holdings to Henry Luken, the company's largest shareholder for $18.5 million in cash. The network is now owned by Luken Communications, LLC. Equity had the option to re-purchase the network within six months of the close for $27.75 million. That option expired December 24, 2008.
Equity filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on December 8, 2008.
Following its acquisition by Luken, the network continued to be operated out of Little Rock, Arkansas, using Equity's C.A.S.H. (Central Automated Satellite Hub) system, which used Intelsat satellite Galaxy 18 to distribute RTN nationally. As of December 2008, Equity Media owed more than half a million dollars to Intelsat and had been threatened with disconnection of satellite feeds.
Contractual problems with Equity
On January 4, 2009, a contract conflict between Equity Media Holdings Corporation and RTN interrupted the programming on many RTN affiliates. As a result, Luken restored a national RTN feed from its headquarters in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with individual customized feeds to non-Equity-owned affiliates to follow on a piecemeal basis. Equity owned or operated stations will lose RTN affiliation immediately, though Luken vows to find new affiliates for RTN in those areas.
Luken Communications, alleging that Equity had left millions of dollars in unpaid debts to RTN's programming suppliers, moved RTN's programming to a new uplink facility using an SES Americom-owned satellite. The network's website also moved after Equity refused to release the rtnville.com domain name.
On some individual RTN digital subchannel affiliates, such as WKRG-TV and WJBF-TV, the signal has taken a few days to be restored. Daily RTN programming data disappeared from Tribune Media Services' listings database, including its service & many stations' DTV guides; but after a delay of several weeks, the template has been restored.
Affiliates
See also: List of Retro Television Network affiliates
While RTN's primary strategy is now carriage on digital subchannels of local broadcast stations, it was also seen on a number of stations owned by former RTN owner Equity Broadcasting. Some of the Equity stations mixed RTN programming with first-run and recent off-network syndicated programming or also carry another network such as MyNetworkTV or ION Television. Following the break-up of Equity and RTN on January 4, 2009, all of Equity's stations carrying RTN removed the network, pledging to replace it with other high-quality programming.
As of January 5, 2009, Equity-owned or operated stations appear to be broadcasting either a local mix of films or replaced RTN with Weigel Broadcasting/MGM's This TV network; the Retro Jams format has also re-appeared in some markets.
Programming
See also: List of programs broadcast by Retro Television Network
The network has package deals with various production companies, as listed in above link. The network had a large content deal with CBS Paramount until its expiration in July 2008, which caused a major schedule shake-up in most markets. RTN also has available a large number of titles from NBC Universal Television Distribution. As RTN has customized schedules for each affiliate, not all shows are usually carried in every market; however, the network has moved towards more coherent schedules as of late.
See also
- MeTV — similar programming service, airing on Weigel Broadcasting stations in Chicago and Milwaukee
- This TV — digital network from Weigel and MGM that airs older shows and movies
- Variety Television Network - a similar digital subchannel distributed by Newport Television stations in various markets
External links
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