Directv Pulls G4 from Lineup - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Zoneboy · 10-31-2010, 10:11 PM

DirecTV will yank guy-centric cabler G4 from its lineup effective Monday.
The satellite provider announced the move Sunday afternoon after it failed to strike a new carriage deal with G4 owner Comcast Entertainment Group.

"We were unable to reach an agreement to carry G4 and it is being removed from the DirecTV platform tomorrow," a DirecTV spokesman said on Sunday.

The two sides have been locked in a carriage battle for months.

With the clock ticking, G4 informed it viewers last week that the channel may be dropped from DirecTV.

"We have been trying to engage DirecTV in fair and reasonable discussions to continue to carry G4," the channel said in a statement last week. "G4 offered DirecTV the same basic deal we have had for the past three years. However they still plan to drop the network and deny G4 fans the only network that focuses on the popular gaming lifestyle."

G4's deal with DirecTV -- believed to be around five cents per subscriber per month -- originally expired at the end of September, but both sides agreed to a one-month extension. A similar arrangement didn't appear to be in the cards as of Thursday afternoon, however.

Over at G4 parent Comcast Entertainment, insiders expressed a belief that DirecTV brass didn't understand the cabler's niche draw. Besides "Attack of the Show" and its other staple series, the gamer-fueled "X-Play," G4 targets young men with a mix of edgy series like "Ninja Warrior" and "Whacked Out Videos," along with off-net fare like "Cops" and "Heroes."

Comcast noted that G4 has grown its audience by more than 175% over the past five years.

Comcast and DirecTV scuffled last year over the sports network Versus, which was yanked from the satcaster until a deal could finally be reached. A carriage showdown would draw the kind of attention that Comcast doesn't want right now, as its deal to acquire a controlling interest in NBC Universal goes through the final stages of regulatory approval.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111...#ixzz13zbaJksC

TMC · 11-01-2010, 02:27 PM

All G4 is these days is an endless cycle of scuzzy reality fare like Cops, Cheaters, Campus PD, and that Ninja show sandwiched in-between the only "relevant" stuff on that channel in Attack of the Show and X-Play. G4 is nothing more than a very, very low-rent Spike wannabe. They have AOTS and X-Play around to throw "geeks" a bone from the old TechTV days.

robyrob · 11-01-2010, 04:22 PM

I really haven't watched the channel since it switched from TechTV - and I agree that it is just a bunch of crap now, and not worth $0.05 per month to me.

icecream · 11-01-2010, 04:48 PM

G4 doesn't have anything worth watching. It's one of the channels I get on Comcast but I wouldn't miss it if removed.

clj2 · 11-01-2010, 04:53 PM

What a waste of space. Good riddance I'd say.

megamanj2004 · 11-02-2010, 12:48 AM

if they yank if off AT&T U-Verse, then maybe they can fill that space back up w/ the Hallmark channel, which should've never have been removed in the 1st place!

TMC · 11-02-2010, 02:31 AM

I think that Olivia Munn, G4's most recognizable personality, has pretty much abandoned the Titanic! Anyway, four years ago, 411mania.com did a great multi-part retrospective about the decline of G4/TechTV:
https://web.archive.org/web/20110806...1;PART-1].html

https://web.archive.org/web/20110215...91;PART-3].htm

https://web.archive.org/web/20110607...91;PART-4].htm

Somebody on another message board that I was reading today, made a very interesting point regarding G4's desire to be like Spike. Spike in recent years has actually been more of a genuine video game devoted channel than the channel that is supposedly around for such a thing in the first place. So if that isn't the definition of irony than I don't now what is.

James28 · 11-02-2010, 02:55 AM

That is the trouble with TV subscription services, they always have to pull certain channels from their lineups following disagreements with that network's management for various reasons.

LUNCH · 11-02-2010, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clj2

What a waste of space. Good riddance I'd say.

I've never even heard of that tv station but I fully agree^^.Lets face it ,90+ percent of tv stations have zero business being on the air.All the same commercial filled garbage,the only reason they are still on the air is because cable and satellite companies carry them.

TMC · 11-04-2010, 05:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TMC

All G4 is these days is an endless cycle of scuzzy reality fare like Cops, Cheaters, Campus PD, and that Ninja show sandwiched in-between the only "relevant" stuff on that channel in Attack of the Show and X-Play. G4 is nothing more than a very, very low-rent Spike wannabe. They have AOTS and X-Play around to throw "geeks" a bone from the old TechTV days.

Here's some interesting statistics regarding G4's programming that I just found:

Quote:

Out of 168 hours of programming a week (in order of most hours):
1.) 30 hours (18%) a week is COPS reruns
2.) 28 hours (17%) a week is to Paid Programming
4.) 10.5 hours (12%) a week is Cheaters reruns.
That's nearly 50% of G4's programming.

- For reference, Attack of the Show comes in third with 21 hours (12.5%) of programming a week.

- X-Play, the only show about gaming is shown 8.5 hours (5%) a week.
-- Of those 8.5 hours, only 1.5 hours is actually new programming
-- Percentage wise, less than 1% of G4's programming is actually new programming about gaming.
-- X-Play is the 7th most run show on G4. It's the 16th (out of 21) most run show when looking at new episodes only.

It's no exaggeration that G4 airs Cops and Cheaters way, way, way too much.

TMC · 11-06-2010, 03:21 AM

What disturbs me is that people like Neal Tiles (the President of G4), I feel think that video gamers are for the most part, unsophisticated slackers. It's no different than the media often depicting wrestling fans as southern inbreds/yokels. Hence, we get programming that aims to the lowest common denominators imaginable, while on a shoestring budget. Honestly, I never had a chance to watch G4 during its original format or when it was TechTV. But when I watch Attack of the Show (what used to be known as The Screen Savers), it seems apparent that their aiming towards the smarmy fratboy, hipster crowd instead of the intellectual, tech/internet savvy crowd. What annoys me the most about G4 is that they insist on taking their audience for granted.

Mr. Television · 11-06-2010, 10:05 AM

I've never watched the channel. It looks like I wasn't missing much.

James · 11-06-2010, 01:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LUNCH

I've never even heard of that tv station but I fully agree^^.Lets face it ,90+ percent of tv stations have zero business being on the air.All the same commercial filled garbage,the only reason they are still on the air is because cable and satellite companies carry them.

AKA · 11-08-2010, 11:37 PM

A good chunk of what's on G4 is smut for smut's sake. International Sexy Ladies Show for example, or the countless AVN specials. We have it blocked on our cable box.

TKMetal · 11-09-2010, 12:47 PM

Now where will I be able to watch quality programs like Cops and Cheaters on an endless loop?

I would expect the same thing to happen in the future with other channels owned by Comcast. I am not a big fan of channels being dropped without compensation to the consumer of some sort but wouldn't miss E! or Style either to be honest.

10-31-2010, 10:11 PM	#1
Zoneboy RIP, I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU :( Moderator Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 13, 2003 Location: AT HOME WISHING ALL THIS WAS JUST A DREAM AND THAT I'LL WAKE UP FROM THIS NIGHTMARE. Posts: 34,349	Directv Pulls G4 from Lineup DirecTV will yank guy-centric cabler G4 from its lineup effective Monday. The satellite provider announced the move Sunday afternoon after it failed to strike a new carriage deal with G4 owner Comcast Entertainment Group. "We were unable to reach an agreement to carry G4 and it is being removed from the DirecTV platform tomorrow," a DirecTV spokesman said on Sunday. The two sides have been locked in a carriage battle for months. With the clock ticking, G4 informed it viewers last week that the channel may be dropped from DirecTV. "We have been trying to engage DirecTV in fair and reasonable discussions to continue to carry G4," the channel said in a statement last week. "G4 offered DirecTV the same basic deal we have had for the past three years. However they still plan to drop the network and deny G4 fans the only network that focuses on the popular gaming lifestyle." G4's deal with DirecTV -- believed to be around five cents per subscriber per month -- originally expired at the end of September, but both sides agreed to a one-month extension. A similar arrangement didn't appear to be in the cards as of Thursday afternoon, however. Over at G4 parent Comcast Entertainment, insiders expressed a belief that DirecTV brass didn't understand the cabler's niche draw. Besides "Attack of the Show" and its other staple series, the gamer-fueled "X-Play," G4 targets young men with a mix of edgy series like "Ninja Warrior" and "Whacked Out Videos," along with off-net fare like "Cops" and "Heroes." Comcast noted that G4 has grown its audience by more than 175% over the past five years. Comcast and DirecTV scuffled last year over the sports network Versus, which was yanked from the satcaster until a deal could finally be reached. A carriage showdown would draw the kind of attention that Comcast doesn't want right now, as its deal to acquire a controlling interest in NBC Universal goes through the final stages of regulatory approval. http://www.variety.com/article/VR111...#ixzz13zbaJksC
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11-01-2010, 04:22 PM	#3
robyrob certified wackball#3 Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Aug 03, 2003 Location: hiding under the third booth at Arnold's Posts: 58,179	I really haven't watched the channel since it switched from TechTV - and I agree that it is just a bunch of crap now, and not worth $0.05 per month to me.
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11-01-2010, 04:48 PM	#4
icecream Cat-tastic and Whiskerlicious Forum Celebrity Join Date: Sep 01, 2006 Location: The Catacombs Posts: 20,691	G4 doesn't have anything worth watching. It's one of the channels I get on Comcast but I wouldn't miss it if removed.
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11-01-2010, 04:53 PM	#5
clj2 Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 16, 2005 Location: SC Posts: 3,501	What a waste of space. Good riddance I'd say.
	__________________ -Chris

11-02-2010, 12:48 AM	#6
megamanj2004 Member Senior Member Join Date: Dec 21, 2004 Posts: 2,357	if they yank if off AT&T U-Verse, then maybe they can fill that space back up w/ the Hallmark channel, which should've never have been removed in the 1st place!
	__________________ 10 AND A HALF YEARS GOING STRONG!!!

11-01-2010, 02:27 PM	#2
TMC Member Forum Idol Join Date: Jan 09, 2001 Posts: 125,458	All G4 is these days is an endless cycle of scuzzy reality fare like Cops, Cheaters, Campus PD, and that Ninja show sandwiched in-between the only "relevant" stuff on that channel in Attack of the Show and X-Play. G4 is nothing more than a very, very low-rent Spike wannabe. They have AOTS and X-Play around to throw "geeks" a bone from the old TechTV days.

11-02-2010, 02:31 AM	#7
TMC Member Forum Idol Join Date: Jan 09, 2001 Posts: 125,458	I think that Olivia Munn, G4's most recognizable personality, has pretty much abandoned the Titanic! Anyway, four years ago, 411mania.com did a great multi-part retrospective about the decline of G4/TechTV: https://web.archive.org/web/20110806...1;PART-1].html https://web.archive.org/web/20110215...91;PART-3].htm https://web.archive.org/web/20110607...91;PART-4].htm Somebody on another message board that I was reading today, made a very interesting point regarding G4's desire to be like Spike. Spike in recent years has actually been more of a genuine video game devoted channel than the channel that is supposedly around for such a thing in the first place. So if that isn't the definition of irony than I don't now what is.
	Last edited by TMC; 09-16-2019 at 03:42 AM.

11-02-2010, 02:55 AM	#8
James28 Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Apr 14, 2007 Posts: 3,976	That is the trouble with TV subscription services, they always have to pull certain channels from their lineups following disagreements with that network's management for various reasons.
	__________________ "When the run of a network TV show has ended, some go out with a bang, some with a whimper, but all are...Future Endeavored." "Stay Safe"? More like "Stay Sad". #2020Hurts

11-06-2010, 03:21 AM	#11
TMC Member Forum Idol Join Date: Jan 09, 2001 Posts: 125,458	What disturbs me is that people like Neal Tiles (the President of G4), I feel think that video gamers are for the most part, unsophisticated slackers. It's no different than the media often depicting wrestling fans as southern inbreds/yokels. Hence, we get programming that aims to the lowest common denominators imaginable, while on a shoestring budget. Honestly, I never had a chance to watch G4 during its original format or when it was TechTV. But when I watch Attack of the Show (what used to be known as The Screen Savers), it seems apparent that their aiming towards the smarmy fratboy, hipster crowd instead of the intellectual, tech/internet savvy crowd. What annoys me the most about G4 is that they insist on taking their audience for granted.

11-06-2010, 10:05 AM	#12
Mr. Television 22 Years at Sitcoms Online Forum Icon Join Date: Jun 06, 2003 Location: Somewhere you're Not Posts: 62,128	I've never watched the channel. It looks like I wasn't missing much.
	__________________ Sonny

11-08-2010, 11:37 PM	#14
AKA Member Forum Star Join Date: Dec 17, 2001 Posts: 15,746	A good chunk of what's on G4 is smut for smut's sake. International Sexy Ladies Show for example, or the countless AVN specials. We have it blocked on our cable box.

11-09-2010, 12:47 PM	#15
TKMetal Millennial Member Frequent Poster Join Date: May 12, 2006 Posts: 280	Now where will I be able to watch quality programs like Cops and Cheaters on an endless loop? I would expect the same thing to happen in the future with other channels owned by Comcast. I am not a big fan of channels being dropped without compensation to the consumer of some sort but wouldn't miss E! or Style either to be honest.