ABC bags affiliate meetings too

And then there was one. One network planning to hold its regularly scheduled annual affiliates meeting that is. That's CBS in Las Vegas in June.

ABC said Friday it has cancelled its annual affiliates meeting, which had been set for May 22-23, for a series of five regional meets, a plan almost identical to the one announced by UPN two days earlier. ABC will hold its regional meetings in June in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta and Houston.

ABC gave the same rationaleas the other networks: Dialog and communication is more effective in smaller groups. Last month, both NBC and Fox cancelled their meetings. NBC will do regionals, Fox an affiliate-wide videoconference, which is what the WB did in January in lieu of its annual pre-NATPE gathering. - Steve McClellan