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I (TV network)
Encyclopedia
Ion Television is a United States
broadcast television network
. Owned by ION Media Networks
, the networked commenced broadcasting on August 31, 1998 as PAX TV, a named it used until July 1, 2005, when it became i: Independent Television; the network was rechristened Ion on January 29, 2007. , the network was reportedly viewable in 99 million homes in the U.S. through its group of 60 stations, as well as cable and satellite distribution. Its stations reach all of the top 20 U.S. markets and 37 of the top 50 markets.
The network was originally named Pax Net, then renamed PAX TV before its launch in 1998 by Lowell "Bud" Paxson
, co-founder of the Home Shopping Network
and chairman of Paxson Communications. The network also aired religious programming at night from The Worship Network
during the late night hours and contemporary Christian television network Praise TV Friday and Saturday nights from midnight–3 a.m. ET/PT.
Most of PAX's initial affiliates were Paxson Communications-owned affiliate stations of the Infomail TV Network or InTV, a broadcast network launched in 1995 by Lowell "Bud" Paxson, that relied solely on infomercial programming. The network launched on August 31, 1998 with PAX's initial schedule being much larger in scope than it would be in later years. It consisted of general entertainment programs from noon-midnight ET/PT weekdays and of paid programming from midnight-1 a.m. ET/PT, 5 a.m.–noon ET/PT, and all afternoon on Saturdays and Sundays.
Initial programming on the network consisted of new shows, such as It's a Miracle, the game show
The Reel to Reel Picture Show
, and talk show
s Woman's Day
and Great Day America, along with reruns of older programming, including Highway to Heaven
, Here's Lucy
, The Hogan Family
, Dave's World
, and Touched by an Angel
. New episodes and older reruns of Candid Camera
were also shown. The network also created some original dramas such as Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye
, Doc
, Mysterious Ways, Hope Island
, and Twice in a Lifetime
.
PAX aired many game shows, Examples include first-run revivals of established cable games such as Supermarket Sweep
and Shop 'til You Drop
, Plus some original games including On the Cover
, Balderdash
and Born Lucky
. Later, the network would carry re-runs of Family Feud
and (Thanks to their partial ownership by NBC) The Weakest Link
.
On June 28, 2005, Paxson announced it would rebrand PAX as i, in order to reflect a new strategy of "providing an independent broadcast platform for producers and syndicators who desire to reach a national audience." After the transition was complete, PAX TV would continue to air programming under its PAX brand on one of its digital channels over the air and in select cable homes (see below). Some media observers jocularly postulated that i was code for "infomercial
".
With this rebranding also came the following changes to the programming lineup:
On January 29, 2007, the network changed its name again, to the current ION Television. The programming was, for the most part, unchanged at that time; the network continued to feature programming from its content deals, such as Who's the Boss?
, Mama's Family
, Growing Pains
, and The Wonder Years
. However, in 2008, the network re-tooled its focus, emphasizing the 18–49 demographic and airing various, newer programming attracting a younger audience, such as Boston Legal
, NCIS
and Criminal Minds
.
general entertainment programming to affiliated stations Monday-Fridays from 3 p.m.-3 a.m. ET/PT, and Saturdays and Sundays from 1 p.m.-3 a.m. ET/PT, along with a children's programming block known as qubo
airing for one hour each on Wednesday–Fridays from 8-9 a.m. ET/PT. All other times are filled with religious programming or infomercials. The network will in the future resume original programming. However the current method of using syndicated programming is very similar to the international model of broadcasting used in Europe, Canada, Latin America, Asia and Australia, but not the United States. This model mixes imported and syndicated shows with original programming.
On May 1, 2008, Ion Television released its new programming plan for the 2008–2009 season at the New York Public Library
in New York City
. In addition to the "new" programming as described, Ion announced a new logo and slogan for the network, Positively Entertaining.
On June 27, 2006, Ion announced a comprehensive programming deal with Warner Bros. Television Distribution
, giving them broadcast rights to movies and programming owned by Warner. On July 5, 2006, Ion announced a similar deal with Sony Pictures Television
, giving them broadcast rights to movies and programming owned by Sony. Starting in September, programs and feature-length movies from both libraries were phased into the primetime schedule. The schedule was heavy on programs from the deals such as Who's the Boss?
, Designing Women
, Mama's Family
, Growing Pains
, Green Acres
, and The Wonder Years
. However, all shows were phased out when the network entered its current direction. Ion also struck a deal with NBC Universal
for library content, which gave it access to shows such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents
.
In January 2008, Ion and Comcast
reached an agreement to continue to carry Ion, as well as add Qubo
and ION Life
to Comcast's channel lineups.
In September 2008 Ion Television reached a multiyear agreement with Warner Bros. Television Distribution
, which gave the network access to the studio's more recent movies. NCIS
joined in September 2008, and Criminal Minds
and Ghost Whisperer
were added to the Ion Television lineup in 2009. Ghost Whisperer began airing on Ion on June 1, 2009 on Mondays.
In January 2009, the network announced that it had acquired broadcast rights to air the award-winning Canadian
cable drama series Durham County
in 2009. The show aired only briefly.
Most Ion programs now come from either 20th Century Fox Television
or CBS Television Distribution
. Ion Television has announced deals with various studios to acquire nearly 40 major feature films and television series from Paramount Pictures
, 20th Century Fox
and Warner Bros.
.
On January 21, 2011, it was announced that Ion Television would air the remaining 11 episodes from season four of Flashpoint
, after CBS airs the first 8 episodes of season four.
In July 2011, Ion Television acquired six films from Starz Media
and will begin air them as part of its Big Movie Weekend starting in November. Ion also acquired syndication rights of top-rated cable progams Psych
and Monk
, from NBCUniversal. Also added is House MD, also from NBCUniversal, which will begin airing twice a week. The programs will begin to air in Fall of 2012.
On August 24, 2011, Ion Television and Penske Media Corporation, announced the launch of Entertainment News Television (ENTV), an original multi-platform breaking news service, which will consist of content mainly from the resources of the Hollywood Life and Deadline.com
entertainment news sites.
In September 2011, Ion Television acquired the syndication rights to Leverage
and George Lopez
. George Lopez began airing on September 29, while Leverage will debut in 2012.
such as the Super Mario Bros.
animated series. The lineup lasted only a year and a half, presumably due to low ratings. (The last animated show to be cancelled was Archie's Weird Mysteries
). What was unusual about the lineup is that although it was a weekend-only lineup like ABC, CBS and NBC, it was spread over two days, Saturday and Sunday.
In May 2006, the network announced plans to launch a new children's block on Saturday mornings starting in September 2006 as part of the Qubo endeavor (see below), teaming ION Media Networks with NBC Universal, Scholastic Press
, Corus Entertainment
's Nelvana
unit, Classic Media
and its Big Idea Productions unit. Qubo includes blocks airing on Ion Television, NBC
and Telemundo
(NBC Universal's Spanish-language network) along with a 24/7 digital broadcast kids channel, Qubo Channel, video-on-demand services and a branded website. ION Television, along with PBS
, are the only broadcast networks that broadcast children's programming on weekday afternoons.
The Qubo
lineup on Ion Television features the same programming as the NBC Qubo lineup. On Friday, September 15, 2006 i started airing the Qubo programs VeggieTales
, Dragon
, 3-2-1 Penguins!
, Babar
, Jane and the Dragon
, and Jacob Two-Two
.
college football
games (produced by College Sports Television), the Women's United Soccer Association
, Real Pro Wrestling
(which more resembles the amateur form than the theatrically based ring sport), the Champions Tour
of golf, Paralympic Games
, and BodogFight
.
Ion Television aired NFL Films
' weekly highlight program, the NFL Films Game of the Week
, Saturdays at 6 PM ET beginning September 15, 2007, with the Giants
-Cowboys
game from September 9. The series ran from September 9 through December 29, but was not renewed for 2008.
Ion Television was supposed to begin coverage of the American Indoor Football Association beginning in March 2008. However, the game's producers did not provide a live broadcast and the deal was canceled.
On December 28, 2010, Ion Television signed a deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship
to air the preliminary fights to their January 1 pay per view UFC 125
.
On February 22, 2011, it was announced that the preliminary fights of UFC 127
would air on February 24, 2011, on Ion Television.
, Comcast
, Charter
, and non-O&O stations, featuring programming from ION Life
in place of paid programming that airs on the main network.
Prior to the launch of Ion Life, the Ion Plus feeds carried reruns of cancelled PAX original programs (Miracle Pets
, Beat the Clock
), as well as public domain
movies and sitcom
episodes (I Married Joan
, The Beverly Hillbillies
).
The feeds used the PAX name and bug
after PAX had changed its name to i, until about September 2005.
transition, they will postpone HDTV plans until March 16. Nevertheless, stations began to switch in late February from 480i
to 720p
, with most programming pillarboxed by very dark blue
bars instead of black ones.
Not all of ION's owned-and-operated stations currently operate the HD feed.
", or splitting a digital TV channel into separate digital sub-channels. On these sub-channels, the stations/network broadcasts three (formerly four) digital channels.
Nelvana
unit, Scholastic Books, Classic Media
and its Big Idea Productions unit announced plans to launch Qubo, a new children's entertainment endeavor spread across all medium platforms, including video-on-demand on digital cable
. The new project features new and library programming from the partners, each one producing a new series a year.
The primary goal for Qubo is to "champion literacy and values in the children's television category". Qubo made its debut on NBC and Telemundo
on September 9, 2006, with NBC's Qubo block repeating on Ion Television on Fridays at 3:00 pm. A 24-hour digital television network began January 8, 2007; programming on the Qubo channel features a daily repeating 4-hour block of shows, all featuring programming exclusive to the new channel. As a consequence to this, the i secondary feed was replaced on i O&Os with a repeating promo loop in late September 2006.
Until January 31, 2010 the Worship Network was carried on digital subchannels of Ion O&Os and in some cases, was used as an alternative to the main Ion network feed. It is also seen around the world through its 250 broadcast affiliates.
On January 31, 2010 Ion dropped the Worship Network from their stations' lineups.
Network programming (on stations that have a network affiliation) and infomercials make up the rest. Since paid programming makes up most of Ion's schedule, the "pro" is that it is the main source of revenue. However, this is also a "con" since Ion relies more on infomercials rather than sitcoms and dramas; sponsors of television series often have qualms about their message being lost on stations whose primary content is infomercials and other paid programming. During the 2005–2006 season, Ion (as i) launched only one new series, Palmetto Pointe
, a teen drama series which only lasted six episodes, and in 2006–2007, the network went entirely to a lineup of reruns (except for Health Report and Ion Life specials). However, beginning in July 2007, this changed, as ION inked a deal with RHI Entertainment
, who is producing new series for Ion.
As a result, there are a small number of stations (such as WKFK-LP
) that have taken dual affiliation with both Ion and another smaller network, usually either America One
or MyNetworkTV
.
The fact that Ion airs more infomercials than they do series programming is the main reason why some satellite operators dropped Ion affiliates from their channel lineups.
In some markets, DirecTV
carries a "place holder" simulcast of the national modified feed (for example, Los Angeles
area viewers watch Ion on both channels 30, KPXN, and 305).
, which was pulled in 2005, and Doc
, which were pulled in 2004 because Pax's international backer, CTV
, pulled out of producing the shows. The organization seemingly recovered a year later when seven TV series made it to Pax's 2004-05 schedule.
In the Spring of 2005, it was reported that PAX intended to break its contract with NBC Universal
, which eliminated most of their entertainment programming, and rely on infomercial
s, talk shows, and other paid programming to help increase cash flow. However, the network issued a press release on May 25, 2005, in which Paxson Communications chairman Lowell "Bud" Paxson
was quoted as saying:
In November 2005, NBC Universal was granted a transferrable option to purchase a controlling stake in Paxson Communications. If this option is exercised, NBC would acquire approximately 63 i affiliates. As part of the agreement, Lowell Paxson left the network (and its parent company).
According to a statement on its website, DirecTV
planned to terminate its agreement with the i network in February 2006 and would drop i as well as its local channels from the DBS service. DirecTV cited that "most of [i Network's] programming consists of infomercials and other promotional shows", despite an earlier promise by network executives that the network "would consist of general, family-oriented entertainment". To appease DirecTV officials, the network decided to junk some infomercials and shopping shows and replace them with old public domain programming and cancelled PAX originals (see below). The channels were expected to be removed from the service by February 28, 2006. However, in May 2006, it was announced that DirecTV and Ion Media had come to a new carriage agreement.
In early 2006, it was announced that the i affiliates in Memphis, Tennessee
(WPXX-TV
), Rapid City, South Dakota
(KKRA-LP) and Greenville, North Carolina
(WEPX-TV, as well as WPXU-TV
in Jacksonville, North Carolina
) would add programming from MyNetworkTV
in September 2006, thus causing programming airing on i to be unavailable on these stations while MNTV is broadcasting. This blow came after losing some affiliates in New Mexico, New York, and Illinois completely (although the New York station, WWBI-LP
in Plattsburgh
, subsequently rejoined i after a sale that resulted in the affiliation change fell through). In April 2006, it was reported i owed more than US $250,000,000 to creditors. Standard & Poor's reported a much higher debt in March 2008, owing $867,000,000 to creditors and having a bond rating of CCC+/Outlook Negative.
In 2006, i struck several major content deals (see details above) in hopes of assuring its long-term future.
Days after the network changed to Ion, a small California-based entertainment group named Positive Ions, Inc. sued ION Media Networks, claiming that the network stole the "Ion" branding. Positive Ions has registered trademarks on the word "Ion" and has used the mark commercially since 1999. On May 14, 2007, Positive Ions filed for an injunction that, if granted, would require ION Media Networks to change its name once again.
In April 2009, it was announced that Ion was one again facing balance sheet problems. The company disclosed that it was in discussions with lenders on "a comprehensive recapitalization" of its balance sheet. That translates to an effort to restructure its considerable debt, which stands at $2.7 billion as of April 2009, according to The Wall Street Journal
.
On May 19, 2009, ION Media Networks
filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, putting the Ion network under bankruptcy for the second time, saying it had reached an agreement with holders of 60% of its first lien secured debt that would extinguish all of its $2.7 billion in legacy debt and preferred stock and recapitalize the company with a $150 million new funding commitment.
On July 15, 2009, RHI entered into a settlement agreement to resolve a dispute with ION Media which, if approved by the Bankruptcy Court, will result in the termination of the programming agreement between RHI and ION.
In late September 2009, a year after Ion purchased WPXX and WEPX/WPXU from Flinn Broadcasting, those stations returned to carrying Ion full-time as they used the out of MyNetworkTV cancelling all existing affiliation agreements in the wake of that network converting to a programming service. WITN
took over MyNetworkTV affiliation via a digital subchannel in Greenville/Washington/New Bern NC, with Memphis CW affiliate WLMT
picking up only WWE SmackDown in place of WPXX.
; Charlotte, North Carolina
; Cincinnati, Ohio
; and St. Louis, Missouri
. In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
, a deal by Paxson to buy WPCB-TV
and trade it for secondary PBS station WQEX was rejected by the Federal Communications Commission
in a huge controversy in the late 1990s; it would not be until 2010 that Paxson's successor, ION, would successfully buy WQEX, which was since converted to a commercial license as WINP-TV. St. Louis at one time received the network by way of a low-power repeater of WPXS
, a station in Mount Vernon, Illinois
). In Charlotte, WAXN-TV
carried some Pax programming from 1998 to 2000, but was never formally affiliated with the network. Buffalo, New York
and Rochester, New York
, normally treated as separate markets, share Ion affiliate WPXJ-TV
, which is centrally located between the two cities and is licensed to Batavia.
In addition, in several other markets, Ion's predecessor was sold to another television station group to affiliate with a different network or a Spanish service, and through either a lack of channel space or interest in the network. Ion has not reappeared in those markets. They include:
In several markets, the station's city of license
is considered outside the main portion of a market's metropolitan area, like Minneapolis – Saint Paul, where that area's affiliate station (KPXM) transmits from St. Cloud
, 60 miles northwest; Detroit, where affiliate WPXD is licensed to Ann Arbor, Michigan
, 40 miles west; Hartford
, where affiliate WHPX is licensed to New London
40 miles southeast; and Milwaukee, where affiliate WPXE is licensed to Kenosha
, with its analog transmitter south of Milwaukee in Racine County (although its digital transmitter is located at the traditional Milwaukee tower farm on the north side of the city). In Cleveland, Ion airs on the former ABC affiliate in Akron
(WVPX-TV), which had formerly targeted an audience in Akron and Canton
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
broadcast television network
Television network
A television network is a telecommunications network for distribution of television program content, whereby a central operation provides programming to many television stations or pay TV providers. Until the mid-1980s, television programming in most countries of the world was dominated by a small...
. Owned by ION Media Networks
ION Media Networks
ION Media Networks is an American television broadcasting company that owns and operates over 60 television stations in most major American markets. It is now a privately owned company.-History:...
, the networked commenced broadcasting on August 31, 1998 as PAX TV, a named it used until July 1, 2005, when it became i: Independent Television; the network was rechristened Ion on January 29, 2007. , the network was reportedly viewable in 99 million homes in the U.S. through its group of 60 stations, as well as cable and satellite distribution. Its stations reach all of the top 20 U.S. markets and 37 of the top 50 markets.
PAX
Bud Paxson
Lowell W. "Bud" Paxson is an American media executive.A native of Florida, Paxson began his career at a little 500 watt radio station in upstate New York, and later as the owner of a small AM radio station, WWQT 1470 AM, in Clearwater, Florida. There, in 1977, an advertiser had plenty of product...
, co-founder of the Home Shopping Network
Home Shopping Network
Home Shopping Network or HSN began in 1977 as a 24-hour/7 day a week home shopping television network televised via cable, satellite, and some terrestrial channels in the Philippines. HSN can also be shopped online at hsn.com...
and chairman of Paxson Communications. The network also aired religious programming at night from The Worship Network
The Worship Network
The Worship Network, or Worship, is a broadcast television service that provides alternative Christian worship-themed programming 24 hours a day, seven days a week...
during the late night hours and contemporary Christian television network Praise TV Friday and Saturday nights from midnight–3 a.m. ET/PT.
Most of PAX's initial affiliates were Paxson Communications-owned affiliate stations of the Infomail TV Network or InTV, a broadcast network launched in 1995 by Lowell "Bud" Paxson, that relied solely on infomercial programming. The network launched on August 31, 1998 with PAX's initial schedule being much larger in scope than it would be in later years. It consisted of general entertainment programs from noon-midnight ET/PT weekdays and of paid programming from midnight-1 a.m. ET/PT, 5 a.m.–noon ET/PT, and all afternoon on Saturdays and Sundays.
Initial programming on the network consisted of new shows, such as It's a Miracle, the game show
Game show
A game show is a type of radio or television program in which members of the public, television personalities or celebrities, sometimes as part of a team, play a game which involves answering questions or solving puzzles usually for money and/or prizes...
The Reel to Reel Picture Show
The Reel to Reel Picture Show
The Reel-to-Reel Picture Show is a game show that aired on PAX from August 31 to October 2, 1998. Peter Marshall was the host and Bill Armstrong announced. It was the network's first game show, debuting the day the network launched.The show was based on a Canadian board game, and the show was...
, and talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
s Woman's Day
Woman's Day
Woman's Day is aimed at a female readership, covering such subjects as food, nutrition, fitness, beauty and fashion. The magazine edition is one of the "Seven Sisters", a group of women's service magazines....
and Great Day America, along with reruns of older programming, including Highway to Heaven
Highway to Heaven
Highway to Heaven is an American television drama series which ran on NBC from 1984 to 1989.- Season 1 :- Season 2 :- Season 3 :- Season 4 :- Season 5 :...
, Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
, The Hogan Family
The Hogan Family
The Hogan Family is an American television situation comedy that aired from March 1, 1986 to July 20, 1991...
, Dave's World
Dave's World
Dave's World is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from 1993 to 1997. The series was based on the writing of Miami Herald columnist Dave Barry.-Plot:...
, and Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel
Touched by an Angel is an American drama series that premiered on CBS on September 21, 1994 and ran for 211 episodes and nine seasons until its conclusion on April 27, 2003. Created by John Masius and produced by Martha Williamson, the series stars Roma Downey, as an angel named Monica, and Della...
. New episodes and older reruns of Candid Camera
Candid Camera
Candid Camera is a hidden camera/practical joke reality television series created and produced by Allen Funt, which initially began on radio as Candid Microphone June 28, 1947...
were also shown. The network also created some original dramas such as Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye is a Canadian-American television series that premiered in the United States in 2002 and Canada in 2003. The show ended in May 2005 due to PAX's decision to halt the production of original programming. It was one of the two highest rated shows on PAX. In September 2009, Gospel...
, Doc
Doc (TV series)
Doc is a medical drama/family drama with strong Christian undertones starring Billy Ray Cyrus as Dr. Clint "Doc" Cassidy, a Montana doctor who takes a job in a New York City medical clinic. It ran from March 11, 2001 to November 28, 2004 on PAX...
, Mysterious Ways, Hope Island
Hope Island (TV series)
Hope Island is an American television show that originally aired on PAX TV in the 1999-2000 season. It was based on Ballykissangel, a popular drama that aired on the BBC One....
, and Twice in a Lifetime
Twice in a Lifetime (TV series)
Twice in a Lifetime is a Canadian mystery/drama series that originally aired from 1999 to 2001. Created by Steve Sohmer, the series aired on CTV in Canada and PAX in the United States.-Synopsis:...
.
PAX aired many game shows, Examples include first-run revivals of established cable games such as Supermarket Sweep
Supermarket Sweep
Supermarket Sweep is an American television game show. Part of the format was similar to other team-based quiz shows; the other part was a live-action race through a supermarket, a novel concept at the time...
and Shop 'til You Drop
Shop 'Til You Drop
Shop 'til You Drop is an American game show that aired on various broadcast television networks from 1991–2006. The series was hosted by Pat Finn from 1991–2002, followed by JD Roberto from 2003–2005. Co-hosts/announcers included Mark L...
, Plus some original games including On the Cover
On The Cover (game show)
On The Cover is a game show that premiered on PAX TV on May 17, 2004. It was hosted by Mark L. Walberg, who previously hosted Russian Roulette, and the announcer was Mitch Lewis.-Premise:...
, Balderdash
Balderdash (game show)
Balderdash is an American television game show that aired on PAX TV from August 2, 2004 to February 4, 2005 with repeats airing until April 22. It was hosted by Elayne Boosler and announced by John Moschitta...
and Born Lucky
Born Lucky
Born Lucky is an American television series in which contestants earned mall money and prizes. It was hosted by Bob Goen and announced by Jonathan Coleman. Four contestants competed in a stunt game show taped at various shopping malls for a chance at $2,000 in mall money...
. Later, the network would carry re-runs of Family Feud
Family Feud
Family Feud is an American television game show created by Mark Goodson and Bill Todman. Two families compete against each other in a contest to name the most popular responses to a survey question posed to 100 people...
and (Thanks to their partial ownership by NBC) The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link is a television game show which first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and will end its run in 2012 when its host Anne Robinson ends her contract. The original British version of the show airs around the world on BBC Entertainment...
.
From PAX to i
Infomercial
Infomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...
".
With this rebranding also came the following changes to the programming lineup:
- i dropped overnight programming from The Worship NetworkThe Worship NetworkThe Worship Network, or Worship, is a broadcast television service that provides alternative Christian worship-themed programming 24 hours a day, seven days a week...
, which had been airing late nights on the network since its launch in August 1998. The time period is now leased to infomercials. Worship programming moved to a digital subchannel on local i affiliates. - In many markets starting in the Fall of 2002, some PAX stations had aired editions of local newscasts from local NBCNBCThe National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliate stations. This was discontinued from some i station lineups on June 30, 2005. - Also dropped was "Tomorrow's Weather Tonight", a five-minute segment featuring current weather and forecasts from WeatherVisionWeatherVisionWeatherVision is a TV syndication company based in Jackson, Mississippi, that produces and distributes customized weather forecast segments for local airing by over 200 commercial and public television stations and Networks nationwide...
which had aired on the channel since 2000.
On January 29, 2007, the network changed its name again, to the current ION Television. The programming was, for the most part, unchanged at that time; the network continued to feature programming from its content deals, such as Who's the Boss?
Who's the Boss?
Who's the Boss? is an American sitcom created by Martin Cohan and Blake Hunter, which aired on ABC from September 20, 1984 to April 25, 1992...
, Mama's Family
Mama's Family
Mama's Family is an American television sitcom that premiered on NBC on January 22, 1983. It was cancelled in May 1984, but NBC would continue to air reruns until September 1985. In September 1986, Mama's Family returned in first-run syndication, where it aired for an additional four seasons,...
, Growing Pains
Growing Pains
Growing Pains is an American television sitcom about an affluent family, residing in Huntington, New York, with a working mother and a stay-at-home psychiatrist father raising three children together, which aired on ABC from September 24, 1985 to April 25, 1992.-Synopsis:The show's premise is based...
, and The Wonder Years
The Wonder Years
The Wonder Years is an American television comedy-drama created by Carol Black and Neal Marlens. It ran for six seasons on ABC from 1988 through 1993. The pilot aired on January 31, 1988 after ABC's coverage of Super Bowl XXII....
. However, in 2008, the network re-tooled its focus, emphasizing the 18–49 demographic and airing various, newer programming attracting a younger audience, such as Boston Legal
Boston Legal
Boston Legal is an American legal dramedy created by David E. Kelley, which was produced in association with 20th Century Fox Television for the ABC...
, NCIS
NCIS (TV series)
NCIS, formerly known as NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service, is an American police procedural drama television series revolving around a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which conducts criminal investigations involving the U.S...
and Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...
.
Programming
Ion Television operates on a 90-hour network programming schedule, which it adopted in March 2011. It provides 90 hours of afternoon and prime timePrime time
Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast programming during the middle of the evening for television programing.The term prime time is often defined in terms of a fixed time period—for example, from 19:00 to 22:00 or 20:00 to 23:00 Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast...
general entertainment programming to affiliated stations Monday-Fridays from 3 p.m.-3 a.m. ET/PT, and Saturdays and Sundays from 1 p.m.-3 a.m. ET/PT, along with a children's programming block known as qubo
Qubo
Qubo is a multi-platform children's television specialty channel endeavor operated as a joint venture between ION Media Networks, NBCUniversal, Nelvana, Scholastic Corporation, and Classic Media...
airing for one hour each on Wednesday–Fridays from 8-9 a.m. ET/PT. All other times are filled with religious programming or infomercials. The network will in the future resume original programming. However the current method of using syndicated programming is very similar to the international model of broadcasting used in Europe, Canada, Latin America, Asia and Australia, but not the United States. This model mixes imported and syndicated shows with original programming.
On May 1, 2008, Ion Television released its new programming plan for the 2008–2009 season at the New York Public Library
New York Public Library
The New York Public Library is the largest public library in North America and is one of the United States' most significant research libraries...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. In addition to the "new" programming as described, Ion announced a new logo and slogan for the network, Positively Entertaining.
Recent programming deals
In 2006, Ion Media Networks reached several programming deals. Two were with major programming suppliers announced within a week of each other. Another would bring original programming to the Ion network, among other things.On June 27, 2006, Ion announced a comprehensive programming deal with Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Warner Bros. Television Distribution is an American television distribution arm of Warner Bros. Television, itself a part of Time Warner formed circa 1960. In 1989, the studio formed Warner Bros...
, giving them broadcast rights to movies and programming owned by Warner. On July 5, 2006, Ion announced a similar deal with Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television, Inc. is an American and global television production/distribution subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment. In turn, the latter is part of the Japanese conglomerate Sony.-Background:...
, giving them broadcast rights to movies and programming owned by Sony. Starting in September, programs and feature-length movies from both libraries were phased into the primetime schedule. The schedule was heavy on programs from the deals such as Who's the Boss?
Who's the Boss?
Who's the Boss? is an American sitcom created by Martin Cohan and Blake Hunter, which aired on ABC from September 20, 1984 to April 25, 1992...
, Designing Women
Designing Women
Designing Women is an American television sitcom that centered on the working and personal lives of four Southern women and one man in an interior design firm in Atlanta, Georgia. It aired on the CBS television network from September 29, 1986 until May 24, 1993. The show was created by head writer...
, Mama's Family
Mama's Family
Mama's Family is an American television sitcom that premiered on NBC on January 22, 1983. It was cancelled in May 1984, but NBC would continue to air reruns until September 1985. In September 1986, Mama's Family returned in first-run syndication, where it aired for an additional four seasons,...
, Growing Pains
Growing Pains
Growing Pains is an American television sitcom about an affluent family, residing in Huntington, New York, with a working mother and a stay-at-home psychiatrist father raising three children together, which aired on ABC from September 24, 1985 to April 25, 1992.-Synopsis:The show's premise is based...
, Green Acres
Green Acres
Green Acres is an American television series starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a couple who move from New York City to a country farm...
, and The Wonder Years
The Wonder Years
The Wonder Years is an American television comedy-drama created by Carol Black and Neal Marlens. It ran for six seasons on ABC from 1988 through 1993. The pilot aired on January 31, 1988 after ABC's coverage of Super Bowl XXII....
. However, all shows were phased out when the network entered its current direction. Ion also struck a deal with NBC Universal
NBC Universal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...
for library content, which gave it access to shows such as Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Alfred Hitchcock Presents
Alfred Hitchcock Presents is an American television anthology series hosted by Alfred Hitchcock. The series featured dramas, thrillers, and mysteries. By the premiere of the show on October 2, 1955, Hitchcock had been directing films for over three decades...
.
In January 2008, Ion and Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
reached an agreement to continue to carry Ion, as well as add Qubo
Qubo
Qubo is a multi-platform children's television specialty channel endeavor operated as a joint venture between ION Media Networks, NBCUniversal, Nelvana, Scholastic Corporation, and Classic Media...
and ION Life
ION Life
ION Life is a digital television network carried by ION Television affiliates, airing lifestyle programming during the day, and movies in the evening. It was launched February 19, 2007...
to Comcast's channel lineups.
In September 2008 Ion Television reached a multiyear agreement with Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Warner Bros. Television Distribution
Warner Bros. Television Distribution is an American television distribution arm of Warner Bros. Television, itself a part of Time Warner formed circa 1960. In 1989, the studio formed Warner Bros...
, which gave the network access to the studio's more recent movies. NCIS
NCIS (TV series)
NCIS, formerly known as NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service, is an American police procedural drama television series revolving around a fictional team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which conducts criminal investigations involving the U.S...
joined in September 2008, and Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds
Criminal Minds is an American police procedural drama that premiered September 22, 2005, on CBS. The series follows a team of profilers from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia. The BAU is part of the FBI National Center for the Analysis of Violent Crime...
and Ghost Whisperer
Ghost Whisperer
Ghost Whisperer is an American television supernatural drama, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005 to May 21, 2010.The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon , who has the ability to see and communicate with ghosts...
were added to the Ion Television lineup in 2009. Ghost Whisperer began airing on Ion on June 1, 2009 on Mondays.
In January 2009, the network announced that it had acquired broadcast rights to air the award-winning Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
cable drama series Durham County
Durham County (TV series)
Durham County is a one-hour Canadian dramatic television series produced by Back Alley Film Productions Ltd. and Muse Entertainment Enterprises...
in 2009. The show aired only briefly.
Most Ion programs now come from either 20th Century Fox Television
20th Century Fox Television
20th Century Fox Television is the television production division of 20th Century Fox Film Corporation, and a production arm of the Fox Broadcasting Company...
or CBS Television Distribution
CBS Television Distribution
CBS Television Distribution is a global television distribution company, formed from the merger of CBS Corporation's two domestic television distribution arms CBS Paramount Domestic Television and King World Productions, including its home entertainment arm CBS Home Entertainment...
. Ion Television has announced deals with various studios to acquire nearly 40 major feature films and television series from Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
, 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
and Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
.
On January 21, 2011, it was announced that Ion Television would air the remaining 11 episodes from season four of Flashpoint
Flashpoint (TV series)
Flashpoint is a Canadian police drama television series that debuted on July 11, 2008, on CTV in Canada and ran on CBS in the United States for its first three and a half seasons. In 2011, Ion Television began airing new episodes of the series in the United States...
, after CBS airs the first 8 episodes of season four.
In July 2011, Ion Television acquired six films from Starz Media
Starz Media
Starz Media is the motion picture, animation, television, and home video subsidiary of Liberty Media.-Subsidiaries:Starz Media's subsidiaries include:*Anchor Bay Entertainment - distribution division for DVDs and videos....
and will begin air them as part of its Big Movie Weekend starting in November. Ion also acquired syndication rights of top-rated cable progams Psych
Psych
Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
and Monk
Monk (TV series)
Monk is an American comedy-drama detective mystery television series created by Andy Breckman and starring Tony Shalhoub as the titular character, Adrian Monk. It originally ran from 2002 to 2009 and is primarily a mystery series, although it has dark and comic touches.The series debuted on July...
, from NBCUniversal. Also added is House MD, also from NBCUniversal, which will begin airing twice a week. The programs will begin to air in Fall of 2012.
On August 24, 2011, Ion Television and Penske Media Corporation, announced the launch of Entertainment News Television (ENTV), an original multi-platform breaking news service, which will consist of content mainly from the resources of the Hollywood Life and Deadline.com
Deadline.com
Deadline.com, part of Jay Penske's PMC, is an online magazine, founded and edited by Nikki Finke.-Publication:The site is updated several times a day, with the infotainment industry as its focus.-History:...
entertainment news sites.
In September 2011, Ion Television acquired the syndication rights to Leverage
Leverage (TV series)
Leverage is an American television drama series on TNT that premiered in December 2008. The series is produced by director/executive producer Dean Devlin's production company Electric Television...
and George Lopez
George Lopez (TV series)
"The George Lopez Show" redirects here. For the late-night program hosted by the same comedian, see Lopez Tonight.George Lopez is an American sitcom starring comedian George Lopez...
. George Lopez began airing on September 29, while Leverage will debut in 2012.
Children's programming
The network, as PAX TV, aired a five-hour children's programming block called PAX Kids on Saturday and Sunday mornings, which featured mostly religious children's programming and archive programming from DIC EntertainmentDiC Entertainment
DIC Entertainment was an international film and television production company. In addition to animated television shows such as Ulysses 31 , Inspector Gadget , The Littles , The Real Ghostbusters , Captain Planet and the Planeteers , and the first two seasons of the English adaptation of...
such as the Super Mario Bros.
Super Mario Bros.
is a 1985 platform video game developed by Nintendo, published for the Nintendo Entertainment System as a sequel to the 1983 game Mario Bros. In Super Mario Bros., the player controls Mario as he travels through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Toadstool from the antagonist...
animated series. The lineup lasted only a year and a half, presumably due to low ratings. (The last animated show to be cancelled was Archie's Weird Mysteries
Archie's Weird Mysteries
Archie's Weird Mysteries is an American animated children's television program, based on the successful Archie comics. The series premise revolves around a Riverdale High physics lab gone awry, making the town of Riverdale a "magnet" for B-movie style monsters.The show is distributed as meeting the...
). What was unusual about the lineup is that although it was a weekend-only lineup like ABC, CBS and NBC, it was spread over two days, Saturday and Sunday.
In May 2006, the network announced plans to launch a new children's block on Saturday mornings starting in September 2006 as part of the Qubo endeavor (see below), teaming ION Media Networks with NBC Universal, Scholastic Press
Scholastic Press
Scholastic is a global book publishing company known for publishing educational materials for schools, teachers, and parents, and selling and distributing them by mail order and via book clubs and book fairs. It also has the exclusive United States' publishing rights to the Harry Potter book...
, Corus Entertainment
Corus Entertainment
Corus Entertainment Inc. is a publicly traded Canadian media and entertainment conglomerate.Corus is a leading Canadian specialty television and radio producer, with additional assets in pay television, advertising services, television broadcasting, children's book publishing and children's...
's Nelvana
Nelvana
Nelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
unit, Classic Media
Classic Media
Classic Media, LLC, is an American production company and distributor of family programming. It was founded in 2000 by former Marvel Entertainment CEO Eric Ellenbogen and former Broadway Video executive John Engelman in hopes of acquiring mismanaged classic properties and giving exposure to...
and its Big Idea Productions unit. Qubo includes blocks airing on Ion Television, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
and Telemundo
Telemundo
Telemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
(NBC Universal's Spanish-language network) along with a 24/7 digital broadcast kids channel, Qubo Channel, video-on-demand services and a branded website. ION Television, along with PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
, are the only broadcast networks that broadcast children's programming on weekday afternoons.
The Qubo
Qubo
Qubo is a multi-platform children's television specialty channel endeavor operated as a joint venture between ION Media Networks, NBCUniversal, Nelvana, Scholastic Corporation, and Classic Media...
lineup on Ion Television features the same programming as the NBC Qubo lineup. On Friday, September 15, 2006 i started airing the Qubo programs VeggieTales
VeggieTales
VeggieTales is an American series of children's computer animated films featuring anthropomorphic vegetables in stories conveying moral themes based on Christianity...
, Dragon
Dragon (TV series)
Dragon is a Canadian stop-motion children's television program which is based on the books by best-selling children's author Dav Pilkey. The show first aired in Canada in 2004 and continues to air on Treehouse TV and on Qubo in the US....
, 3-2-1 Penguins!
3-2-1 Penguins!
3-2-1 Penguins! is a series of Sci-Fi computer-animated cartoons launched on November 14, 2000.3-2-1 Penguins! is a series of Sci-Fi computer-animated cartoons launched on November 14, 2000.3-2-1 Penguins! is a series of Sci-Fi computer-animated cartoons launched on...
, Babar
Babar (TV series)
Babar is an animated television series produced in Canada by Nelvana Limited and The Clifford Ross Company. It premiered in 1989 on CBC and HBO, subsequently was rerun on HBO Family and Qubo. The series is based on Jean de Brunhoff's original Babar books, and was Nelvana's first international...
, Jane and the Dragon
Jane and the Dragon
Jane and the Dragon is a series of children's books written and illustrated by Martin Baynton. The three books are "Jane and the Dragon" ; "The Dragon's Purpose" ; and "Jane and the Magician" ....
, and Jacob Two-Two
Jacob Two-Two
Jacob Two-Two is the central character in a series of children's books, Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang , Jacob Two-Two and the Dinosaur and Jacob Two-Two's First Spy Case written by Mordecai Richler, and Jacob Two-Two on the High Seas written by Cary Fagan.Jacob is the youngest child of...
.
Sports
Previous network sports event telecasts included Conference USAConference USA
Conference USA, officially abbreviated C-USA, is a college athletic conference whose member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports...
college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
games (produced by College Sports Television), the Women's United Soccer Association
Women's United Soccer Association
The Women's United Soccer Association, often abbreviated to the WUSA, was the world's first women's soccer league in which all the players were paid as professionals. Founded in February 2000, the league began its first season in April 2001 with eight teams in the United States...
, Real Pro Wrestling
Real Pro Wrestling
Real Pro Wrestling was a professional sports league of wrestling, similar to the amateur wrestling found in the Olympic Games and at the college and high school level...
(which more resembles the amateur form than the theatrically based ring sport), the Champions Tour
Champions Tour
The Champions Tour, a golf tour run by the PGA Tour, hosts a series of events annually in the United States and the United Kingdom for golfers 50 years of age and older. Many of the PGA Tour's most successful golfers have gone on to play on the Champions Tour.The Senior PGA Championship, founded in...
of golf, Paralympic Games
Paralympic Games
The Paralympic Games are a major international multi-sport event where athletes with a physical disability compete; this includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and Cerebral Palsy. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which are held immediately following their...
, and BodogFight
BodogFight (TV series)
Bodog Fight was a reality television series and mixed martial arts competition that originated from Costa Rica and is created and produced by entertainment mogul Calvin Ayre and his Bodog Entertainment Group...
.
Ion Television aired NFL Films
NFL Films
NFL Films is a Mount Laurel, New Jersey-based company devoted to producing commercials, television programs, feature films, and documentaries on the National Football League, as well as other unrelated major events and awards shows...
' weekly highlight program, the NFL Films Game of the Week
NFL Films Game of the Week
The NFL Films Game of the Week, formerly known as the NFL Game of the Week, is a program that airs on NFL Network, the official television channel of the National Football League...
, Saturdays at 6 PM ET beginning September 15, 2007, with the Giants
New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League...
-Cowboys
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football franchise which plays in the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League . They are headquartered in Valley Ranch in Irving, Texas, a suburb of Dallas...
game from September 9. The series ran from September 9 through December 29, but was not renewed for 2008.
Ion Television was supposed to begin coverage of the American Indoor Football Association beginning in March 2008. However, the game's producers did not provide a live broadcast and the deal was canceled.
On December 28, 2010, Ion Television signed a deal with the Ultimate Fighting Championship
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship is the largest mixed martial arts promotion company in the world that hosts most of the top-ranked fighters in the sport...
to air the preliminary fights to their January 1 pay per view UFC 125
UFC 125
UFC 125: Resolution was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on January 1, 2011 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States.-Background:...
.
On February 22, 2011, it was announced that the preliminary fights of UFC 127
UFC 127
UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Sunday, 27 February 2011 at Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia. Due to the time zone difference it aired live on Saturday, 26 February in North America...
would air on February 24, 2011, on Ion Television.
Ion Plus
Separate national feeds have been made available to Dish Network, DirecTV, Time Warner CableTime Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable is an American cable television company that operates in 28 states and has 31 operating divisions...
, Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
, Charter
Charter Communications
Charter Communications is an American company providing cable television, high-speed Internet, and telephone services to more than 4.7 million customers in 25 states. By revenues, it is the fourth-largest cable operator in the United States, behind Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Cox Communications...
, and non-O&O stations, featuring programming from ION Life
ION Life
ION Life is a digital television network carried by ION Television affiliates, airing lifestyle programming during the day, and movies in the evening. It was launched February 19, 2007...
in place of paid programming that airs on the main network.
Prior to the launch of Ion Life, the Ion Plus feeds carried reruns of cancelled PAX original programs (Miracle Pets
Miracle Pets
Miracle Pets is a one-hour, live action program on the ION network, offering a perspective into the amazing realm of human and animal interaction. Hosted by Alan Thicke, the series features animals protecting humans or other pets by means of extraordinary means, one such being a llama guarding a...
, Beat the Clock
Beat the Clock
Beat the Clock is a Goodson-Todman game show which has aired on American television in several versions since 1950.The original show, hosted by Bud Collyer, ran on CBS from 1950–1958 and ABC from 1958–1961. The show was revived in syndication as The New Beat the Clock from 1969–1974, with Jack Narz...
), as well as public domain
Public domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
movies and sitcom
Situation comedy
A situation comedy, often shortened to sitcom, is a genre of comedy that features characters sharing the same common environment, such as a home or workplace, accompanied with jokes as part of the dialogue...
episodes (I Married Joan
I Married Joan
I Married Joan is an American sitcom that aired on NBC from 1952 to 1955. It starred veteran vaudeville, film, and radio comedienne Joan Davis as the manic wife of a mild-mannered community judge, Bradley Stevens .-Synopsis:...
, The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr....
).
The feeds used the PAX name and bug
Digital on-screen graphic
A digital on-screen graphic is a watermark-like station logo that many television broadcasters overlay over a portion of the screen-area of their programs to identify the channel...
after PAX had changed its name to i, until about September 2005.
Ion HD
In early 2009, Ion Media Networks had planned to launch ION Television HD by February 16. However, on February 19 they released a statement saying that to avoid confusion with the current DTVDigital television
Digital television is the transmission of audio and video by digital signals, in contrast to the analog signals used by analog TV...
transition, they will postpone HDTV plans until March 16. Nevertheless, stations began to switch in late February from 480i
480i
480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC...
to 720p
720p
720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan...
, with most programming pillarboxed by very dark blue
Navy blue
Navy blue is a very dark shade of the color blue which almost appears as black. Navy blue got its name from the dark blue worn by officers in the British Royal Navy since 1748 and subsequently adopted by other navies around the world....
bars instead of black ones.
Not all of ION's owned-and-operated stations currently operate the HD feed.
Multiplexing
Ion affiliates have made notable use of "multiplexingMultiplexing
The multiplexed signal is transmitted over a communication channel, which may be a physical transmission medium. The multiplexing divides the capacity of the low-level communication channel into several higher-level logical channels, one for each message signal or data stream to be transferred...
", or splitting a digital TV channel into separate digital sub-channels. On these sub-channels, the stations/network broadcasts three (formerly four) digital channels.
Qubo on Ion Television
On May 8, 2006, Ion Media Networks, NBC Universal, Corus Entertainment'sCorus Entertainment
Corus Entertainment Inc. is a publicly traded Canadian media and entertainment conglomerate.Corus is a leading Canadian specialty television and radio producer, with additional assets in pay television, advertising services, television broadcasting, children's book publishing and children's...
Nelvana
Nelvana
Nelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
unit, Scholastic Books, Classic Media
Classic Media
Classic Media, LLC, is an American production company and distributor of family programming. It was founded in 2000 by former Marvel Entertainment CEO Eric Ellenbogen and former Broadway Video executive John Engelman in hopes of acquiring mismanaged classic properties and giving exposure to...
and its Big Idea Productions unit announced plans to launch Qubo, a new children's entertainment endeavor spread across all medium platforms, including video-on-demand on digital cable
Digital cable
Digital cable is a generic term for any type of cable television distribution using digital video compression or distribution. The technology was originally developed by Motorola.-Background:...
. The new project features new and library programming from the partners, each one producing a new series a year.
The primary goal for Qubo is to "champion literacy and values in the children's television category". Qubo made its debut on NBC and Telemundo
Telemundo
Telemundo is an American television network that broadcasts in Spanish. The network is the second-largest Spanish-language content producer in the world, and the second-largest Spanish-language network in the United States, behind Univision....
on September 9, 2006, with NBC's Qubo block repeating on Ion Television on Fridays at 3:00 pm. A 24-hour digital television network began January 8, 2007; programming on the Qubo channel features a daily repeating 4-hour block of shows, all featuring programming exclusive to the new channel. As a consequence to this, the i secondary feed was replaced on i O&Os with a repeating promo loop in late September 2006.
The Worship Network
The Worship Network was originally founded in 1992 to "create an atmosphere in the home to inspire and encourage a quiet time to worship God." When PAX launched in 1998, The Worship Network provided overnight programming. In 2005, PAX and The Worship Network struck a deal in which the network would be carried on a digital subchannel of PAX 24 hours a day.Until January 31, 2010 the Worship Network was carried on digital subchannels of Ion O&Os and in some cases, was used as an alternative to the main Ion network feed. It is also seen around the world through its 250 broadcast affiliates.
On January 31, 2010 Ion dropped the Worship Network from their stations' lineups.
Subchannel ordering
Though each channel map may vary by market, usually the ION affiliate is carried on channel -1, with Qubo on -2 and ION Life on -3.Differences between Ion and other broadcast networks
Ion Television, unlike other broadcast networks, does not necessarily allow its owned and operated stations to air syndicated programming during the daytime and late night hours. In the United States, syndicated programming accounts for a majority of local network affiliate and independent stations revenue.Network programming (on stations that have a network affiliation) and infomercials make up the rest. Since paid programming makes up most of Ion's schedule, the "pro" is that it is the main source of revenue. However, this is also a "con" since Ion relies more on infomercials rather than sitcoms and dramas; sponsors of television series often have qualms about their message being lost on stations whose primary content is infomercials and other paid programming. During the 2005–2006 season, Ion (as i) launched only one new series, Palmetto Pointe
Palmetto Pointe
Palmetto Pointe is a television show that was shot on location and based in Charleston, South Carolina. It first aired on August 28, 2005 on i: Independent Television; its last episode aired on October 16, 2005....
, a teen drama series which only lasted six episodes, and in 2006–2007, the network went entirely to a lineup of reruns (except for Health Report and Ion Life specials). However, beginning in July 2007, this changed, as ION inked a deal with RHI Entertainment
RHI Entertainment
RHI Entertainment , formerly known as Hallmark Entertainment, is an American producer of television movies and miniseries, founded in 1979 by Robert Halmi Jr. and Robert Halmi Sr. as Robert Halmi Incorporated....
, who is producing new series for Ion.
As a result, there are a small number of stations (such as WKFK-LP
WKFK-LP
WKFK-LD is a low power television station licensed to Pascagoula, Mississippi which broadcasts on Channel 7.WKFK-LD is affiliated with the Ion Television network in the evenings, America One on Saturdays and Retro Television Network in the overnights, mornings and afternoons...
) that have taken dual affiliation with both Ion and another smaller network, usually either America One
America One
America One is an over-the-air television network in the United States. The network serves over 170 LPTV, Class A, Full Power, Cable and Satellite affiliate stations...
or MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
.
The fact that Ion airs more infomercials than they do series programming is the main reason why some satellite operators dropped Ion affiliates from their channel lineups.
In some markets, DirecTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
carries a "place holder" simulcast of the national modified feed (for example, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
area viewers watch Ion on both channels 30, KPXN, and 305).
Network troubles
In 2003, the predecessor Pax network scaled back its operations. It was originally offering five or six new series each season. That year the number of new series airing on Pax dwindled to just two: Sue Thomas: F.B.EyeSue Thomas: F.B.Eye
Sue Thomas: F.B.Eye is a Canadian-American television series that premiered in the United States in 2002 and Canada in 2003. The show ended in May 2005 due to PAX's decision to halt the production of original programming. It was one of the two highest rated shows on PAX. In September 2009, Gospel...
, which was pulled in 2005, and Doc
Doc (TV series)
Doc is a medical drama/family drama with strong Christian undertones starring Billy Ray Cyrus as Dr. Clint "Doc" Cassidy, a Montana doctor who takes a job in a New York City medical clinic. It ran from March 11, 2001 to November 28, 2004 on PAX...
, which were pulled in 2004 because Pax's international backer, CTV
CTV television network
CTV Television Network is a Canadian English language television network and is owned by Bell Media. It is Canada's largest privately-owned network, and has consistently placed as Canada's top-rated network in total viewers and in key demographics since 2002, after several years trailing the rival...
, pulled out of producing the shows. The organization seemingly recovered a year later when seven TV series made it to Pax's 2004-05 schedule.
In the Spring of 2005, it was reported that PAX intended to break its contract with NBC Universal
NBC Universal
NBCUniversal Media, LLC is a media and entertainment company engaged in the production and marketing of entertainment, news, and information products and services to a global customer base...
, which eliminated most of their entertainment programming, and rely on infomercial
Infomercial
Infomercials are direct response television commercials which generally include a phone number or website. There are long-form infomercials, which are typically between 15 and 30 minutes in length, and short-form infomercials, which are typically 30 seconds to 120 seconds in length. Infomercials...
s, talk shows, and other paid programming to help increase cash flow. However, the network issued a press release on May 25, 2005, in which Paxson Communications chairman Lowell "Bud" Paxson
Bud Paxson
Lowell W. "Bud" Paxson is an American media executive.A native of Florida, Paxson began his career at a little 500 watt radio station in upstate New York, and later as the owner of a small AM radio station, WWQT 1470 AM, in Clearwater, Florida. There, in 1977, an advertiser had plenty of product...
was quoted as saying:
In November 2005, NBC Universal was granted a transferrable option to purchase a controlling stake in Paxson Communications. If this option is exercised, NBC would acquire approximately 63 i affiliates. As part of the agreement, Lowell Paxson left the network (and its parent company).
According to a statement on its website, DirecTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
planned to terminate its agreement with the i network in February 2006 and would drop i as well as its local channels from the DBS service. DirecTV cited that "most of [i Network's] programming consists of infomercials and other promotional shows", despite an earlier promise by network executives that the network "would consist of general, family-oriented entertainment". To appease DirecTV officials, the network decided to junk some infomercials and shopping shows and replace them with old public domain programming and cancelled PAX originals (see below). The channels were expected to be removed from the service by February 28, 2006. However, in May 2006, it was announced that DirecTV and Ion Media had come to a new carriage agreement.
In early 2006, it was announced that the i affiliates in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
(WPXX-TV
WPXX-TV
WPXX-TV, channel 50 , is a ION Network affiliate in Memphis, Tennessee.The station signed on the air on December 31, 1994 under the call letters WFBI and was owned by Memphis businessman, radiologist George Flinn...
), Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City, South Dakota
Rapid City is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota, and the county seat of Pennington County. Named after Rapid Creek on which the city is established, it is set against the eastern slope of the Black Hills mountain range. The population was 67,956 as of the 2010 Census. Rapid...
(KKRA-LP) and Greenville, North Carolina
Greenville, North Carolina
Greenville is the county seat of Pitt County and principal city of the Greenville, North Carolina metropolitan area. Greenville is the health, entertainment, and educational hub of North Carolina's Tidewater and Coastal Plain and in 2008 was listed as the Tenth Largest City in North Carolina...
(WEPX-TV, as well as WPXU-TV
WPXU-TV
WPXU-TV is one of two Ion Television affiliates for the Greenville/Jacksonville/New Bern/Washington, North Carolina television market. It is licensed to Jacksonville...
in Jacksonville, North Carolina
Jacksonville, North Carolina
Jacksonville, North Carolina, is a city in Onslow County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the population stood at 70,145, which makes Jacksonville the 14th largest city in North Carolina...
) would add programming from MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
in September 2006, thus causing programming airing on i to be unavailable on these stations while MNTV is broadcasting. This blow came after losing some affiliates in New Mexico, New York, and Illinois completely (although the New York station, WWBI-LP
WWBI-LP
WWBI-LP was a low-power television station in Plattsburgh, New York. The station was owned and operated by SMC Communications.The station was licensed as Class A, even though the calls list it as an "-LP"; this was the case with many other stations licensed prior to 1999, when the FCC began to...
in Plattsburgh
Plattsburgh (city), New York
Plattsburgh is a city in and county seat of Clinton County, New York, United States. The population was 19,989 at the 2010 census. The population of the unincorporated areas within the Town of Plattsburgh was 11,870 as of the 2010 census; making the population for the immediate, urban Plattsburgh,...
, subsequently rejoined i after a sale that resulted in the affiliation change fell through). In April 2006, it was reported i owed more than US $250,000,000 to creditors. Standard & Poor's reported a much higher debt in March 2008, owing $867,000,000 to creditors and having a bond rating of CCC+/Outlook Negative.
In 2006, i struck several major content deals (see details above) in hopes of assuring its long-term future.
Days after the network changed to Ion, a small California-based entertainment group named Positive Ions, Inc. sued ION Media Networks, claiming that the network stole the "Ion" branding. Positive Ions has registered trademarks on the word "Ion" and has used the mark commercially since 1999. On May 14, 2007, Positive Ions filed for an injunction that, if granted, would require ION Media Networks to change its name once again.
In April 2009, it was announced that Ion was one again facing balance sheet problems. The company disclosed that it was in discussions with lenders on "a comprehensive recapitalization" of its balance sheet. That translates to an effort to restructure its considerable debt, which stands at $2.7 billion as of April 2009, according to The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
.
On May 19, 2009, ION Media Networks
ION Media Networks
ION Media Networks is an American television broadcasting company that owns and operates over 60 television stations in most major American markets. It is now a privately owned company.-History:...
filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, putting the Ion network under bankruptcy for the second time, saying it had reached an agreement with holders of 60% of its first lien secured debt that would extinguish all of its $2.7 billion in legacy debt and preferred stock and recapitalize the company with a $150 million new funding commitment.
On July 15, 2009, RHI entered into a settlement agreement to resolve a dispute with ION Media which, if approved by the Bankruptcy Court, will result in the termination of the programming agreement between RHI and ION.
In late September 2009, a year after Ion purchased WPXX and WEPX/WPXU from Flinn Broadcasting, those stations returned to carrying Ion full-time as they used the out of MyNetworkTV cancelling all existing affiliation agreements in the wake of that network converting to a programming service. WITN
WITN-TV
WITN-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for Eastern North Carolina's Inner Banks licensed to Washington. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 32 from a transmitter in Grifton along NC 118. The station can also be seen on Charter and Time Warner Cable channel 7 as...
took over MyNetworkTV affiliation via a digital subchannel in Greenville/Washington/New Bern NC, with Memphis CW affiliate WLMT
WLMT
WLMT is the CW-affiliated television station for Western Tennessee licensed to Memphis. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 31 from a transmitter in Arlington's Brunswick section. The station can also be seen on Comcast channel 9 and in high definition on digital channel...
picking up only WWE SmackDown in place of WPXX.
Major market absences
Ion has no over-the-air stations in several major markets, most notably Baltimore, Maryland; San Diego, CaliforniaSan Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
; Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
; Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
; and St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
. In Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, a deal by Paxson to buy WPCB-TV
WPCB-TV
WPCB-TV is a Christian television station in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA DMA. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 50. It is licensed to Greensburg with studios and transmitter in Wall and is the home of Cornerstone Television, which originates most of its programs from the station...
and trade it for secondary PBS station WQEX was rejected by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
in a huge controversy in the late 1990s; it would not be until 2010 that Paxson's successor, ION, would successfully buy WQEX, which was since converted to a commercial license as WINP-TV. St. Louis at one time received the network by way of a low-power repeater of WPXS
WPXS
WPXS is an owned and operated affiliate of the Daystar Television Network, broadcasting a digital signal on UHF channel 21, which redirects to former analog channel 13 via PSIP. WPXS is licensed to Mount Vernon, Illinois, which is located in the Paducah, Kentucky/Cape Girardeau,...
, a station in Mount Vernon, Illinois
Mount Vernon, Illinois
Mount Vernon is a city located near the center of Jefferson County, Illinois, in the United States. In the 2010 census, the city's reported population was 15,277 people....
). In Charlotte, WAXN-TV
WAXN-TV
WAXN-TV is an Independent television station for Charlotte, North Carolina that is licensed to Kannapolis. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 50 from a transmitter near Reedy Creek Park in the Newell section of Charlotte. Owned by Cox Enterprises, the station is sister to...
carried some Pax programming from 1998 to 2000, but was never formally affiliated with the network. Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
and Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
, normally treated as separate markets, share Ion affiliate WPXJ-TV
WPXJ-TV
WPXJ-TV is the Ion Television affiliate in the Buffalo, New York market, but can also be seen in the Rochester market and is licensed to Batavia. The station is owned by Ion Media Networks , acting as an owned-and-operated station of the group's Ion Television network, and airs programming on...
, which is centrally located between the two cities and is licensed to Batavia.
In addition, in several other markets, Ion's predecessor was sold to another television station group to affiliate with a different network or a Spanish service, and through either a lack of channel space or interest in the network. Ion has not reappeared in those markets. They include:
- ChampaignChampaign, IllinoisChampaign is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, in the United States. The city is located south of Chicago, west of Indianapolis, Indiana, and 178 miles northeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Though surrounded by farm communities, Champaign is notable for sharing the campus of the University of...
-Springfield, IllinoisSpringfield, IllinoisSpringfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
: WPXU (now CWThe CW Television NetworkThe CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...
affiliate WBUIWBUIWBUI is a television station licensed to Decatur, Illinois and serving the Central Illinois market, including the cities of Springfield, Champaign, and Urbana. The station broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 22 from a transmitter in Oreana along I-72. WBUI is affiliated...
) - Green Bay, WisconsinGreen Bay, WisconsinGreen Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
: WPXG (now CW affiliate WCWFWCWFWNMN is the RTV-affiliated television station for Upstate New York that is licensed to Saranac Lake. It broadcasts a digital signal on UHF channel 40 from a transmitter on the WYZY-FM tower north of the village along the Essex and Franklin County line. The station can also be seen on Burlington...
) - Albuquerque, New MexicoAlbuquerque, New MexicoAlbuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
: KAPX (now TeleFuturaTeleFuturaTeleFutura is a U.S. Spanish-language broadcast television network owned by Univision with headquarters in Miami, Florida.-Overview:TeleFutura Is America’s #2 Spanish-Language Network in prime time...
affiliate KTFQ) - FresnoFresno, CaliforniaFresno is a city in central California, United States, the county seat of Fresno County. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 510,365, making it the fifth largest city in California, the largest inland city in California, and the 34th largest in the nation...
-Visalia, CaliforniaVisalia, CaliforniaVisalia is a Central California city situated in the heart of California’s agricultural San Joaquin Valley, approximately southeast of San Francisco and north of Los Angeles...
: KPXF (now TeleFutura affiliate KTFF) - Little Rock, ArkansasLittle Rock, ArkansasLittle Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
: KYPX (now independent station KMYA) - Reno, NevadaReno, NevadaReno is the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The city has a population of about 220,500 and is the most populous Nevada city outside of the Las Vegas metropolitan area...
: KRENKREN-TVKREN-TV is a full-service television station in Reno, Nevada, broadcasting locally in digital on UHF channel 26. It is an affiliate of Univision. It rebroadcasts its two low-power analog sister stations—The CW Plus affiliate KRNS-CA on digital subchannel 27.2 and TeleFutura affiliate KNVV-LP on...
(now CW affiliate) - Baton Rouge, LouisianaBaton Rouge, LouisianaBaton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
: WLFT-CAWLFT-CAWLFT-CA is a low-power UHF television outlet, located on channel 30. It is locally owned via Touch Family Broadcasting and affiliated with Me-TV. It broadcasts local sports, The 700 Club, and other Christian ministry programming, from a tower in the greater Baton Rouge area...
(now independent religious) - Charlottesville, VirginiaCharlottesville, VirginiaCharlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
: WADA-LP (now FoxFox Broadcasting CompanyFox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
affiliate WAHU-CAWAHU-CAWAHU-CD is the low-powered Fox-affiliated television station for Charlottesville, Virginia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 40 from a transmitter on Carters Mountain. The station can also be seen on Comcast channel 9 and in high definition on digital channel 213...
) - Lafayette, LouisianaLafayette, LouisianaLafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...
: KDCG-LPKDCG-LPKDCG-CD, Channel 22 in Opelousas, Louisiana, is a Class-A television station affiliated with the Retro Television Network. It was previously affiliated with the America One network, along with programming from the The Sportsman Channel...
(now RTNRetro Television NetworkThe Retro Television Network is a system of television stations that airs classic television shows as well as more recently produced programs...
affiliate) - Shreveport, LouisianaShreveport, LouisianaShreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
: KPXJKPXJKPXJ is the CW-affiliated television station for Shreveport, Louisiana. Licensed to Minden, the station broadcasts a digital signal on UHF channel 21. KPXJ's transmitter is located in Mooringsport. The station is owned by The Wray Family as part of a duopoly with the area's ABC affiliate KTBS-TV...
(now CW affiliate) - Montgomery, AlabamaMontgomery, AlabamaMontgomery is the capital of the U.S. state of Alabama, and is the county seat of Montgomery County. It is located on the Alabama River southeast of the center of the state, in the Gulf Coastal Plain. As of the 2010 census, Montgomery had a population of 205,764 making it the second-largest city...
: WBMMWBMMWBMM is the CW-affiliated television station for Central Alabama's Black Belt licensed to Tuskegee. It broadcasts a digital signal on UHF channel 22 from a transmitter in unincorporated Southeastern Bullock County. The station can also be seen on Charter channel 14 and Knology channel 19...
(first to Daystar Television NetworkDaystar Television NetworkThe Daystar Television Network is an American evangelical Christian television religious broadcasting network headquartered near Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex in Bedford, Texas...
, now a CW affiliate) - Sioux Falls, South DakotaSioux Falls, South DakotaSioux Falls is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Dakota. Sioux Falls is the county seat of Minnehaha County, and also extends into Lincoln County to the south...
: KAUN-LPKAUN-LPKAUN-LP is a low-power Retro Television Network network affiliate for Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Owned by Rapid Broadcasting, KAUN-LP can be seen on channel 18 on cable television in much of eastern South Dakota....
(now RTNRetro Television NetworkThe Retro Television Network is a system of television stations that airs classic television shows as well as more recently produced programs...
affiliate) - Madison, WisconsinMadison, WisconsinMadison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
: W43BRW43BRW43BR is a Television station based in Baraboo, Wisconsin. It is located within Madison's television market but only serves the Baraboo and Wisconsin Dells areas. Its transmitter is located on the Baraboo Range near Devil's Lake State Park co-located with WOLX, W290AL, WRPQ, weather radio station...
(now America OneAmerica OneAmerica One is an over-the-air television network in the United States. The network serves over 170 LPTV, Class A, Full Power, Cable and Satellite affiliate stations...
affiliate)
In several markets, the station's city of license
City of license
A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator....
is considered outside the main portion of a market's metropolitan area, like Minneapolis – Saint Paul, where that area's affiliate station (KPXM) transmits from St. Cloud
St. Cloud, Minnesota
St. Cloud is a city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the largest population center in the state's central region. The population was 65,842 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Stearns County...
, 60 miles northwest; Detroit, where affiliate WPXD is licensed to Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
, 40 miles west; Hartford
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
, where affiliate WHPX is licensed to New London
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....
40 miles southeast; and Milwaukee, where affiliate WPXE is licensed to Kenosha
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Kenosha is a city and the county seat of Kenosha County in the State of Wisconsin in United States. With a population of 99,218 as of May 2011, Kenosha is the fourth-largest city in Wisconsin. Kenosha is also the fourth-largest city on the western shore of Lake Michigan, following Chicago,...
, with its analog transmitter south of Milwaukee in Racine County (although its digital transmitter is located at the traditional Milwaukee tower farm on the north side of the city). In Cleveland, Ion airs on the former ABC affiliate in Akron
Akron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
(WVPX-TV), which had formerly targeted an audience in Akron and Canton
Canton, Ohio
Canton is the county seat of Stark County in northeastern Ohio, approximately south of Akron and south of Cleveland.The City of Caton is the largest incorporated area within the Canton-Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area...
.
Network slogans
- Pax TV: A Friend of the Family (1998–1999)
- Pax TV: Share It With Someone You Love (1999–2000)
- Pax TV: Share The Wonder (2000–2001)
- Pax TV: Feel Good TV (2001–2002)
- I want my Pax TV (2002–2003; after the dispute with DirecTVDirecTVDirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
) - Pax TV: Feel The Spirit (2003–2004)
- Pax TV: Oh what a night! (2004–2005)
- i: Independent Television (2005–2006)
- What's Your ION? (2006–2007) -- a play on the name, ion, which is pronounced like the words "eye" and "on", and a play on the phrase "What's your eye on?"
- ION: Your Home for Popular TV Favorites (2007–2008)
- ION Television: Positively Entertaining (2008–present) -- a play on the name, ionIonAn ion is an atom or molecule in which the total number of electrons is not equal to the total number of protons, giving it a net positive or negative electrical charge. The name was given by physicist Michael Faraday for the substances that allow a current to pass between electrodes in a...
, which is an atom or molecule with a positive or negative electrical charge.
See also
- List of Ion Television affiliates
- List of programs broadcast by Ion Television
- List of stations owned and operated by ION Media Networks
- List of United States cable and satellite television networks
- List of United States over-the-air television networks
- Lists of corporate assets