SportsChannel Los Angeles
Encyclopedia
SportsChannel Los Angeles aired from 1989 to 1993 in the southern California
area; it was a regional sports network
.
, the California Angels
, and the Los Angeles Clippers
. It also showed National Hockey League
games, college football
and college basketball
through an affiliation with SportsChannel America
.
, a famous avant-garde
movie service still fondly remembered by local movie fans. Like its predecessor, SCLA was a premium cable service; in other words, cable subscribers had to pay an extra monthly fee to receive it. Officials obviously thought it would give SCLA a financial advantage compared to Prime Ticket
, which had cable rights to show the Los Angeles Lakers
and Los Angeles Kings
games. Prime Ticket was a non-premium service (as was, and is, ESPN
).
, a playoff game between the Clippers and Utah Jazz
was moved to the Anaheim Convention Center
and the game broadcast was taken off NBC
and placed on TBS, which had to be blacked out
in the L.A. area. SCLA then inherited the exclusive local rights. SCLA chose not to unscramble its signal, and, in letters to the Los Angeles Times and other sources, viewers complained that the game should have been made available to all subscribers as a public service.
owned by Cablevision. SCLA was not on that list, as local officials had pulled the plug more than two years earlier. The Angels and Clippers immediately joined the Prime Ticket (now Fox Sports West) lineup, while the Dodgers signed with Fox Sports West 2 (now the "second" Prime Ticket) in 1997.
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
area; it was a regional sports network
Regional sports network
In the United States of America and Canada, a regional sports network, or RSN, is a cable television station that presents sports programming to a local market. The most important programming on an RSN consists of live broadcasts of professional and college sporting events, as those games generate...
.
Programming
SCLA featured live play-by-play of the Los Angeles DodgersLos Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
, the California Angels
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...
, and the Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers are a professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California, United States. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
. It also showed National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
games, 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...
and college basketball
College basketball
College basketball most often refers to the USA basketball competitive governance structure established by the National Collegiate Athletic Association . Basketball in the NCAA is divided into three divisions: Division I, Division II and Division III....
through an affiliation with SportsChannel America
SportsChannel America
SportsChannel America was a cable television network operated by Cablevision. It was the country's first regional sports network, and thus an important ancestor to many of the United States' regional sports outlets, especially Fox Sports Net and Comcast SportsNet. SportsChannel New York was the...
.
As a premium cable service
SCLA was the successor to Z ChannelZ Channel
The Z Channel was one of the first pay cable stations in the United States. Launched in 1974 from Los Angeles, California, this station was known for its devotion to the art of cinema due to the eclectic choice of films by the programming chief, Jerry Harvey...
, a famous avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
movie service still fondly remembered by local movie fans. Like its predecessor, SCLA was a premium cable service; in other words, cable subscribers had to pay an extra monthly fee to receive it. Officials obviously thought it would give SCLA a financial advantage compared to Prime Ticket
Fox Sports Net West/Prime Ticket
Fox Sports West and Prime Ticket are Los Angeles-based regional sports networks serving Southern California, Central California, southern Nevada, and Hawaii...
, which had cable rights to show the Los Angeles Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
and Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
games. Prime Ticket was a non-premium service (as was, and is, ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
).
Criticism
But the tactic backfired, as SCLA's subscriber base never matched that of Prime Ticket. Also, the system caused viewer complaints, none more so than on May 3, 1992. Because of the riots that rocked Los Angeles1992 Los Angeles riots
The 1992 Los Angeles Riots or South Central Riots, also known as the 1992 Los Angeles Civil Unrest were sparked on April 29, 1992, when a jury acquitted three white and one hispanic Los Angeles Police Department officers accused in the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King following a...
, a playoff game between the Clippers and Utah Jazz
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
was moved to the Anaheim Convention Center
Anaheim Convention Center
The Anaheim Convention Center is a major convention center in Anaheim, California. It is located across from the Disneyland Resort on Katella Avenue. Much of the Anaheim Convention Center has been renovated in recent years with state-of-the-art facilities...
and the game broadcast was taken off 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 placed on TBS, which had to be blacked out
Blackout (broadcasting)
Blackout usually relates to the broadcasting of sports events, television programming, that is prohibited in a certain media market.The purpose is theoretically to generate more revenue by obliging certain actions from fans, either by making them buy tickets or watch other games on TV...
in the L.A. area. SCLA then inherited the exclusive local rights. SCLA chose not to unscramble its signal, and, in letters to the Los Angeles Times and other sources, viewers complained that the game should have been made available to all subscribers as a public service.
Demise
In 1996, SportsChannel America folded and the remaining systems were placed into National Sports Partners, a holding companyHolding company
A holding company is a company or firm that owns other companies' outstanding stock. It usually refers to a company which does not produce goods or services itself; rather, its purpose is to own shares of other companies. Holding companies allow the reduction of risk for the owners and can allow...
owned by Cablevision. SCLA was not on that list, as local officials had pulled the plug more than two years earlier. The Angels and Clippers immediately joined the Prime Ticket (now Fox Sports West) lineup, while the Dodgers signed with Fox Sports West 2 (now the "second" Prime Ticket) in 1997.