Diginets: The Father of FASTs
One of the greatest unfulfilled promises made by TV broadcasters during the US's transition from analog to digital transmission in the mid-to-late '00s was the notion of expanding capacity for local stations to innovate new channels and potential data services - in essence, enabling them to "multiplex" offerings beyond just one traditional, inflexible linear channel of programming. What better way for local TV stations to build deeper connections to the viewers and advertisers in their respective markets, the logic went, than to broaden content offerings like news, sports and community events via new digital "subchannels" that could supplement main-feed (and soon-to-be high definition) signals already spoken for by traditional network, syndication and newscast fare.
Initially, some real pioneering efforts were brought to market, and the possibilities of what could be done with newfound digital bandwidth seemed limitless: simultaneous multiplexing of CBS' NCAA March Madness basketball coverage (Capitol's WRAL/Raleigh); NBC WeatherPlus (NBC and its O&O stations); Raycom-backed/Les Garland-led music video channel The Tube - as well as a host of over-the-air video distribution concepts like pay TV bundle USDTV; datacasting services iBlast, GeoCast, DTVPlus, etc.; and even Disney's ahead-of-its-time broadcast video-on-demand service MovieBeam.
By the dawn of the 2010s, much of that earlier experimentation had given way to more sobering economic realities, exacerbated by increased competition from expanding linear pay TV and broadband Internet penetration, and a decade-ending Great Recession. In response, a new, cheaper model emerged: the digital multicast television network - or "diginet."
Designed to be broadcast terrestrially as supplementary services on digital subchannels (up to 5-6, depending on compression standards) from a single local TV transmitter, national dignets typically run on small production budgets and often rely heavily on older, inexpensive library content or cheaply-sourced foreign/imported programming. Repeats are rampant and regular; revenue comes from low-CPM (often direct-response) national advertising. Today, 90+ nationally available diginets populate the airwaves, across just about every television genre one can think of.
The irony, of course, is that the rapid proliferation of streaming CTV FAST channels has already spawned exponentially more of these kinds of offerings than capacity-constrained broadcasters could ever hope to create and distribute (potential ATSC 3.0/NextGenTV advances notwithstanding) - all powerfully enhanced and cost-reduced by advances in digital technology and personalized data. That said, there is no denying that FASTs owe their existence to the model (eventually) refined by broadcasters' digital subchannel adventures - a fact evidenced by a growing number of networks/channels that are simultaneously and interchangeably distributed across both domains - such as Scripps' ION, Fremantle's Buzzr, FOX Weather, and TBN's new Dr. Phil vehicle Merit Street.
Next week, we'll shine a spotlight on some of our favorite broadcast diginets - including some you just may not yet know about. If you have a favorite, send us a note and tell us why!
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Local News To Peruse:
Reverse Comp Regime Threatens Small Stations’ Existence (TVNewsCheck: Paige Albiniak)
60 Years On, Weigel Broadcasting Sticks To The Plan (Crain's Chicago Business: Corli Jay)
Requiem For The General Manager (TVNewsCheck: Emily Barr)
Multicast Is Maturing And Studios Are Taking Notice (TVNewsCheck: Paige Albiniak)
S.E. Cupp to Lead ‘Battleground,’ A Roundtable Show Focused on Swing States, For Fox Stations (Variety: Brian Steinberg)
Broadcasters Aim To Avoid ‘Race To The Bottom’ With Streaming Ad Inventory (TVNewsCheck: Paige Albiniak)
