Is The Niche Cable Network Dead? (SyFy Channel Rant)

This TV By The Numbers article on cable networks who abandon the branding and content that made them famous is spot-on.

Why is the Sci-Fi/SyFy Channel changing their branding so radically? Even their new logo and recent ads look generic and decidedly non-genre:


It's because they feel they can make more money and reach a greater audience by being generic. I call it "Nerd Flight." Which, with "fanboy" culture having such a deep influence on current pop-culture, seems rather pointless. If anything, I think Sci-Fi would have made far more inroads by turning into a G4 sort of cable network instead of something that looks like, based on their current branding, a cross between Apple Computer and Lifetime. I look at that ad for SyFy and I expect the "Sex in the City" girls to walk out of the scene any second. Not that there's anything wrong for that, but when think Sci-Fi Channel I think "Mansquito."


But this all started with MTV replacing most of its music videos for reality-based TV shows based on touring Kid Rock's garden shed, right? Then you have the Cartoon Network's brilliant move to include their own live-action reality programming. Because goddammit I don't turn to CN for Speed Racer – I want to see basketball player dads and America's Greatest Rollercoasters.

This is not to mention channels like Bravo & A&E, which 10 years ago I considered something along the lines of PBS, getting schlocky with even more reality programming. Remember the old days when AMC didn't have commercials and you'd just fire up that sucker and watch some awesome movies? Of course, "Mad Men" has redeemed AMC somewhat, but I will always remember those Halloween & POTA marathons with fondness.

But this is all moot because we are fast approaching an on-demand broadcast structure where we choose what episodes to watch and when – largely for free. In that light, I see the desperate branching-out of the various niche cable networks as a last-ditch effort to wave as much shiny objects in front of the public until even Mr. & Mrs. "Not With The Times" are watching the latest "Burn Notice" on their iPhone without a second thought.


That said, it is not just that SyFy is getting more generic – they are getting more Internet-ready. That's why they chose a silly-but-catchy nonsense word as their new branding, much like Hulu, et al. Far from being clueless, they know exactly what they are doing. We only think they are being clueless because we don't know the full story.

That said, my heart will always belong to "Mansquito."