Column Chronicles: Cable TV channels merge and spin off to increase audiences

Cable TV channels merge and spin off to increase audiences

Frank Cotolo
July 30, 2020

There is so much content on cable TV these days that some existing channels dedicated to specific audiences are losing fans. Now, some channels are merging as a single channel, while others are presenting spin offs for fresh approaches.

One of the first mergers will be the hybrid of The Learning Channel and The Discovery Channel. As one entity, the new title will be The Learning To Discover Channel. It will also feature a block of its programming to be titled The Discover Learning Channel.

Spinning off content from those mergers, The Discovery Channel will also offer new channels from other mergers, including The Science Discovery Channel. That channel will subdivide with the History Channel to become The History of Science Channel.

Other spin offs from the Discovery Channel include channels titled

Specialized audiences from the channels Logo and Lifestyle will find content they love when those two channels unite to form The Lifelogo Channel.

Arts & Entertainment will merge with The American Movie Channel to form The American Arts Channel during the day and Movie Entertainment Channel on evening hours.

Nickleodeon and Nick, Jr. won't change formats. Instead, they will run at the same time, twenty-four seven.

Comedy Central will merge with The Cartoon Channel into Cartoon Comedy Central. Also, The Weather Channel will discontinue programming on its own and offer segments on all of the aforementioned channels.

The Smithsonian Channel will merge with The Military Channel to form The Jingo Channel.

The most successful cable channel has been Spike. It has been so popular that it will offer many spin offs, including Poke, Pinch, Nudge, Sting, Impale, Slice, Swoon, Sweep, Scan, Sever, Scrape, Slide, Stomp, Stick and Stammer.

Frank Cotolo can be found hosting the talk and interview programme Cotolo Chronicles. You can send him an e-mail at this address: frank@148.ca.