Start TV

Start TV
Name	Start TV
Country	United States
Launched	2018
Owner	Weigel Broadcasting, CBS Television Stations (joint venture)
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois

Start TV is an American digital multicast television network focusing on classic television drama series, particularly procedural and character-driven programs from the mid-20th century. The service aims to target viewers interested in crime, legal, and women's-led narratives by offering curated blocks of series drawn from archives and syndication libraries. It operates as a multicast offering carried on subchannels of broadcast television stations and by select cable and streaming partners.

History

Start TV was announced in 2018 as a joint venture between Weigel Broadcasting and CBS Television Stations to capitalize on multicast subchannel growth in the wake of expanding digital multicasting after the Digital television transition in the United States. The project followed trends set by networks like MeTV, Antenna TV, and Heroes & Icons while aligning with corporate strategies seen at Fox Television Stations and Hearst Television. Initial affiliate clearances were negotiated with groups including Nexstar Media Group, Tegna Inc., and Sinclair Broadcast Group, enabling a rapid rollout across markets such as New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Dallas–Fort Worth. Executive leadership drew talent experienced from CBS Corporation programming and multicast operations at Weigel Broadcasting known for launching networks like MeTV and Decades.

Strategic timing leveraged viewer migration patterns documented after the rise of streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu (service), positioning Start TV to reach audiences seeking appointment television akin to classic blocks on Turner Classic Movies and themed programming strategies used by NBCUniversal. Regulatory and carriage discussions touched on retransmission consent matters familiar from disputes involving Sinclair Broadcast Group and Tribune Media.

Programming

The network's schedule emphasizes procedural dramas, legal series, and women-centered narratives primarily from the 1960s through the 1990s, reflecting libraries associated with CBS Television Studios, 20th Century Fox Television, Warner Bros. Television, and independent distributors like Shamrock Holdings. Lineups have included episodes from series such as Perry Mason, The Equalizer, Murder, She Wrote, The Rockford Files, and Cagney & Lacey, alongside lesser-known titles from producers like Aaron Spelling and Glen A. Larson. Programming blocks are curated around themes—crime, law, mystery—similar to strategies employed by ION Television and themed nights on CBS and ABC.

Syndication acquisitions required rights negotiations with studios holding television libraries such as Paramount Global, Sony Pictures Television, and NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. The network has also aired made-for-television movies and specials featuring talents like Angela Lansbury, Barbara Stanwyck, Kate Jackson, Tom Selleck, and Fred Astaire; acquisitions echoed distribution patterns used by Hallmark Channel and Lifetime (TV network). Scheduling adapts to seasonal events, echoing programming strategies of AMC (TV network), and leverages catalog curation practices similar to Turner Classic Movies and BBC archival releases.

Distribution and affiliates

Start TV uses digital subchannels on broadcast stations owned by groups such as CBS Television Stations, Weigel Broadcasting, Nexstar Media Group, Tegna Inc., and Sinclair Broadcast Group to reach major U.S. markets including Miami, Atlanta, Boston, Houston, Phoenix, and San Francisco. Affiliates negotiate carriage with over-the-air viewers via ATSC tuners and with pay-TV platforms using agreements akin to retransmission consent deals seen between Comcast and major station groups. Cable and satellite carriage has been pursued with operators like Charter Communications, Dish Network, and DirecTV in select regions, while streaming distribution parallels moves by multicast peers to appear on services like Philo (streaming service) and ad-supported video on demand platforms such as Pluto TV.

Affiliate relations mirror historical station-network partnerships exemplified by WCBS-TV and WBBM-TV affiliations, and the network has expanded through market-specific deals drawing on established multicast footprints of WGN-TV and WPIX. Local promotion strategies replicate cross-promotion tactics used by CBS owned-and-operated stations and independent stations in major markets.

Branding and identity

The network's visual identity employs retro-modern graphics and a logo intended to evoke classic television aesthetics while appealing to contemporary viewers familiar with curated streaming interfaces from Netflix and Roku. Promotional campaigns have used talent-driven imagery referencing stars associated with the slate, similar to marketing styles of A&E Networks and TV Land. Corporate branding stewardship involves teams with experience at Weigel Broadcasting and CBS Corporation overseeing art direction, ad sales, and affiliate marketing initiatives comparable to those at Scripps Networks Interactive and Discovery, Inc..

Music beds and on-air imaging reference period-appropriate cues reminiscent of soundtracks found in productions by Jerry Goldsmith and Henry Mancini, while on-air promos align with multichannel branding techniques used by Fox multicast properties. Merchandise and social media engagement mirror tactics used by networks such as Syfy and Bravo (American TV network) to cultivate niche fan communities.

Reception and ratings

Critical and audience reception positioned the network within a competitive multicast landscape alongside MeTV, Antenna TV, and Cozi TV, with viewership drawn from demographics documented in reports by Nielsen Media Research and advertising interest from agencies like WPP and Omnicom Group. Ratings performance in key demos occasionally paralleled classic programming blocks on TBS (U.S. TV channel) and USA Network during revivals and nostalgia cycles, influencing affiliate renewals and ad inventory sold through sales houses similar to Cumulus Media and iHeartMedia.

Critics noted the network's effective curation of female-led procedurals, comparing offerings to historic portrayals in series produced by Universal Television and distributed by CBS affiliates. Audience engagement metrics showed strength among older age cohorts and viewers seeking linear alternatives to streaming, comparable to patterns observed for Hallmark Channel and PBS pledge-driven programming. The network's ratings trajectory has informed strategic content renewals and acquisitions consistent with multicast business models overseen by firms such as Weigel Broadcasting and multichannel networks across the United States.

Category:Television networks in the United States