STRIKE COVERAGE: Fox's Chernin: Strike Likely a Boon for Net
By Jon Hemingway -- Broadcasting & Cable, 11/7/2007 11:36:00 PM
On the News Corp. earnings conference call Wednesday, president and chief operating officer Peter Chernin said, “A strike is probably a positive for the company.”
He said Fox Broadcasting was in a better position than its network rivals to ride out a strike because it had a “wider array of reality programming,” most notably American Idol. He added that most of Fox’s animated shows -- which include The Simpsons, King of the Hill and Family Guy -- are “about a year ahead” in production.
Because the network could offer original programming on virtually every night of the week, he expects the strike to actually increase Fox’s share. “We would expect if anything that it would lift our market share and have us win this season by an even greater margin than we expect to,” Chernin added.
Chernin said a strike would also cut costs, adding, “We save more money in term deals and story costs and probably the lack of making pilots than we lose in potential advertising.”
Chernin expressed frustration that the two sides could not come to agreement and said that a prolonged strike, lasting 8-12 months, would begin to have an impact on the business.
For a gallery of photos from the picket line, click here.
For full coverage of the strike, click here.
