PAX attax with original shows. Will it matter?

'PAX
will probably never move past being a small network. Coverage is clearly an issue with them. They still have a major problem getting seen by a significant number of
people.'

PAX attax with original
shows. Will it matter?

Minor league network plots iffy course to majors

By Elizabeth White

  After nearly three years on the air, PAX is finally making a move to become a serious broadcast network by offering a full slate of original shows next fall.
   PAX plans to have eight to 10 hours of original programming per week, much like UPN and the WB do now. About half will be dramatic series, and half will be reality-based programs.
   "We think we’re doing really well considering we came out of the gate with less resources given to other networks like the WB and UPN," says Tim Johnson, executive vice president of programming development at PAX. "This is a lot sooner than I expected."
    But it may be too little, too late for audiences and media buyers. The network has done nearly nothing to gain attention since launching in the fall of 1998, other than receive a major investment from NBC.
    And PAX’s family friendly focus is yet to prove itself as a viable market strategy. The family friendly "Gilmore Girls" is a modest hit for the WB at best, and the cable Fox Family Channel has suffered primetime ratings declines over the last year.
   Media buyers concede that quality programs can drive viewers to a network, but question whether PAX has the resources to create such a program.
    "Programming can help, such as ‘The Sopranos’ bringing more viewers to HBO," says Allen Banks, executive media director at Saatchi & Saatchi. "A hit show can give a network some visibility in a very cluttered environment. But we’re not going to see any edgy kind of programs on PAX."
    Currently the network runs a mix of original, reality-based shows like "Miracle Pets," reruns of old dramas like "Diagnosis Murder," movies and specials.
   Since NBC’s investment in the fledgling network in 1999, PAX’s original programs have picked up some steam under the peacock influence. The network has a primetime household rating of 0.9, season to date, up 13 percent from last season’s 0.8.
   The most notable program this season is "Mysterious Ways," which appeared on NBC over the summer, on PAX during the fall, and reappeared on NBC last week as a midseason replacement. The show also continues to air on PAX.
   Johnson said that similar joint projects with NBC could be in PAX’s future.
   "The reality is that our resources are more limited than NBC’s," says Johnson. "If PAX is a minor league team, and it holds true that major league players move up from the minors, then we’re happy to be the minor league for NBC right now."
   But Banks says that he doubts PAX will ever move out of minor league status because of the difficulty in creating a hit show and lingering coverage problems for the network.
   "PAX will probably never move past being a small network," says Banks. "Coverage is clearly an issue with them. They still have a major problem getting seen by a significant number of people."
    For most of the past two years, PAX has been sorting out its distribution and coverage problems, rather than developing extensive original programming. The network now claims to be in 81 percent of U.S. homes, through broadcast, cable, and satellite distribution systems.
    Original series announced so far by PAX are a second season of "Mysterious Ways"; "The Ponderosa," a prequel series for the 1960s western "Bonanza"; and "Left Behind," a science-fiction show based on Biblical prophecies.

-Elizabeth White is a staff writer for Media Life.

Printer-Friendly Version | Send to a Friend
Cover Page | Contact Us