NCTC Extends Deal With Hallmark Channel

If continuous content carriage is king, then the National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC), which has 1,100 member firms, must feel like royalty, having signed a multiyear renewal of its distribution deal with Crown Media Holdings Inc., owner and operator of the Hallmark Channel.

The Hallmark Channel wouldn’t divulge terms of the deal and the length of the agreement was not disclosed. Crown did not say if the deal covers use of its content across platforms, including the Internet and wireless.

While telcos have been focused on acquiring content for their IPTV-driven triple-play bundles to set the stage for feature differentiation, cablecos have the benefit of simply extending current deals minus the time and resources needed to start from square one.

However, cablecos will compete with the likes of Echostar, which own satellite service provider DISH Networks and Mediacom. Both also have signed distribution renewal agreements with Crown, which is emblematic of the license programming to all comers approach embraced by content owners.

The company also has a distribution deal in place with DIRECTV. DIRECTV Group Inc. is an investor in Crown Media.

This forces providers to differentiate their video services in areas other than the sheer volume of channels they carry, with many having nearly identical programming lineups when it comes to mass audience and medium audience channels.

“Hallmark Channel is a top-10 rated network with original movies and classic series. It has been one of the most launched cable networks by our members the past few years,” according to Jeff Abbas, NCTC president and CEO.

NCTC is a non-profit programming and hardware purchasing cooperative. NCTC said its member companies own more than 5,500 individual cable systems serving 12 million subscribers.

Crown Media owns and operates cable television channels and distributes Hallmark Channel in the United States to more than 82 million subscribers. The program service is distributed through more than 5,300 cable systems and communities as well as direct-to-home satellite services across the country.

The Hallmark Channel www.hallmark.com   

NCTC www.cabletvcoop.com

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