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Tuesday, March 25, 2008
KXAN back on Suddenlink Cable
After months of wrangling, KXAN and Suddenlink Cable have reached a retransmission agreement, and now viewers in Pflugerville, Georgetown and Leander can watch weatherman Jim Spencer again. And for the first time, they can see KXAN in high-definition.
KXAN was bumped off the Suddenlink system in Williamson County on Dec. 31, leaving viewers without NBC programming for almost a week, until NBC station KCEN in Temple joined Suddenlink’s lineup. Neither KXAN’s corporate owner LIN Television nor the Missouri-based Suddenlink would divulge details of the arrangement. But effective Tuesday, KXAN’s local news, syndicated programming and NBC shows were back up and running in 30,000 Suddenlink households.
“The terms are confidential, but I will say we’ve always stated that it’s about fair market value, and we’ve received fair market value,” said Eric Lassberg, general manager of KXAN.
The dispute between Suddenlink and KXAN did not affect the more than 300,000 households in Central Texas that have Time Warner Cable.
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‘Scrubs’ resurrected? ‘Prison Break’ renewed
“Scrubs,” that brilliantly hilarious little sitcom that gets no respect, is back in production.
Never mind that the show and NBC decided last summer that this season would be its last. And never mind that the writers’ strike pumped holes into a plan to have the show go out with a grand finale.
The episode being filmed this week is the fifth of only five that NBC ordered before the strike, for a total of 13 planned for the show’s seventh and allegedly final season.
In one of those only-in-Hollywood plot twists, ABC Studios produces the NBC series, and according to Hollywood trade publications, ABC is in negotiations to bring “Scrubs” over to the alphabet network for an eighth season in the fall. Star Zach Braff and the rest of the principal cast are on board to continue.
Would reruns stay on NBC? Could NBC refuse to relinquish the license agreement? It’s a complicated web, so stay tuned.
More ‘Prison Break’ for sure
Fox, on the other hand, has announced an uncomplicated pickup of the gritty drama series “Prison Break” for a fourth season.
The serialized saga starring Dominic Purcell and Wentworth Miller as prison inmates-turned-fugitives-turned-inmates again-turned fugitives again will move its production base from Dallas to Los Angeles for the new season. (The show was initially set and filmed in Chicago.)
“Prison Break” did fairly well paired with “24,” scoring well among men ages 18 to 34, but the renewal is considered a leap of faith considering last season’s ratings sagged among the general viewing audience.
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