In Case you didn't read it, Q Television is a huge article in the DesertSun Newspaper!
I have in bold what I think is importnant. All of it is, but check it out.
Local network tries for a cable slot
By Lou Hirsh
The Desert Sun
August 19th, 2004
A Palm Springs-based television network soon will make it onto home screens in places like New York and Chicago.
Now the Q Television Network, with 24 hours of cable programming geared to a gay and lesbian audience, is campaigning to reach viewers in its own back yard.
On Wednesday, Q Television launched a promotional campaign, including a full-page advertisement in The Desert Sun, urging potential viewers to call Time Warner, which serves most of the Coachella Valley, and ask the cable company to carry the channel.
Through an agreement with cable service provider RCN Corp. of Princeton, N.J., the Q network’s programs will be seen beginning Sept. 4 in New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Chicago.
"Most of our agreements are with East Coast cities so far," said Melinda Tremaglio, a producer with the network. "We’re trying to bring it westward."
She said the Coachella Valley, particularly Palm Springs, has a gay community that would be as receptive to its programming as those in the larger cities. The channel will offer news, talk, movies, sports and documentary programs.
"This area is a very good match for us," she said.
The full-page advertisement caught Time Warner officials by surprise, said Stephen McMahon, vice president and general manager in the cable company’s Palm Desert office.
"Prior to the ad appearing, I had not heard of Q Television, and we had not heard formally from anybody over there about being placed on our system," McMahon said Wednesday.
"I actually called over there after I heard they had placed the ad asking people to call us," he added.
As of Wednesday afternoon, McMahon said he had not heard back from Q Television President Frank Olsen, and no decision had been made on whether to carry the channel.
"We’ll have a discussion with them, and we’ll be happy to entertain what they have to offer," McMahon said.
He said Time Warner’s decision will be based on a number of financial, legal and audience factors, as part of the company’s standard review procedure when considering new offerings.
As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, McMahon said the local Time Warner office had received six phone calls in relation to the newspaper ad.
Olsen was out sick Wednesday and could not be reached by The Desert Sun for comment.
Time Warner serves about 140,000 customers in the Coachella Valley. Most customers receive between 28 and 80 channels based on the service package they purchase, although there are more than 250 channels when various digital and music options are included.
Q Television is operated by Triangle Multi-Media Inc., which is currently moving into new headquarters on Indian Canyon Drive, after relocating from another downtown Palm Springs office.
Shares of Triangle and RCN trade on what is known as the Pink Sheets, a relatively obscure over-the-counter stock exchange for sometimes troubled or emerging companies.
Q Television programming has been in the works for the past two years, but Triangle has been struggling financially. On July 28, Triangle officials announced the company had obtained intermediate financing in the form of a $1 million loan and equity placement of $1 million through a major private investment fund, with further financing near completion.
In a press release at the time, Olsen said those arrangements will allow the company to continue securing programming.
In a posting on its Web site Wednesday, Q Television announced that it had lined up Coachella Valley sponsors to offer its programming free to viewers who are housebound with AIDS.
If it gets on Time Warner locally, Q Television plans to pay for those customers’ basic cable and waive the standard $7.95 monthly subscription charge for Q programming.
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