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The WB Television Network

The WB Television Network, casually referred to as The WB, is a television network in the United States, founded as a joint venture between the Warner Bros. film studio and Tribune Company on January 11,1995. The network is typically referred to as The WB or sometimes The Frog (referring to the network's mascot, the animated character Michigan J. Frog who was introduced in the 1955 animated short, One Froggy Evening).

History

Much like its compeitor UPN, the WB was a reaction to the success of the upstart Fox Network and first-run syndicated programming during the late 1980s and early 1990s such as Baywatch. WB's first programs were sitcoms and other cheaply produced fare, mostly targetted at an ethnic audience. Of the four original series to debut on the WB's launch season, only 7th Heaven was renewed beyond the first year. The WB also added the "Kids' WB" programming block, which mixed Warners' biggest hit shows (Tiny Toon Adventures, Animaniacs and later Batman: The Animated Series, all of which originated either on Fox, Fox Kids or in syndication) with new productions and original shows.

After the Turner-Time Warner merger in 1996, Kids' WB formed an alliance with Cartoon Network, and over time, they have shared more and more programming.

A few years after its launch, The WB intentionally shifted its programming to capture what it perceived to be a heavily fragmented market by marketing to the under-courted teen market. While The Fox Network was intentionally targetting older audiences with shows like Ally McBeal, The WB's breakout hits during the late 1990s centered around attractive highschoolers with Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dawson's Creek in prime time. Just three years after their launch, they were ranked #1 among Teenage audiences]]. Following the success of those shows, the network went on to produce similarly the similarly positioned Felicity and Charmed.

Around the same time, The WB also launched the American version of Pokémon in the Kids' WB blocks, which they acquired from syndication (TV Tokyo) in 1998 and became a widespread pop-culture phenomenon. WB also got the English-language version of the second series Yu-Gi-Oh! anime, titled Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters in Japan.

It is sold to TV markets below the number 100 in viewership as determined by Nielsen in a packaged format, with a master schedule and no local advertisements.

It was estimated in 2003 that the WB is viewable by 84.66% of all households, reaching 90,282,480 houses in the United States. The WB has 177 VHF and UHF owned-and-operated or affiliate stations in the U.S.


See also: List of United States television networks

External links


Last updated: 08-16-2005 14:06:34