Instruct: Given a question, retrieve passages that can help answer the question.
Query: Who owns FX network?
FX (originally an initialism of Fox Extended) is an American pay television channel based in Los Angeles, California, owned by 21st Century Fox through FX Networks, LLC. Originally launched on June 1, 1994, the network's original programming aspired to the standards of premium cable channels such as HBO, Showtime, and Starz in regard to adult themes and content, higher-quality writing, directing, acting, and sister channels such as FXX and FXM. It also carries reruns of theatrical films and broadcast network sitcoms.
Fox operates a one-hour timeshift named Fox +1. The channel originally launched as a two-hour timeshift service, as FX +, and was joined on Sky by FX +1 on 10 December 2007. The branding of sister timeshift channel FX + had not been changed to reflect this, causing confusion due to the two being very similar in name (FX +, FX +1), with viewers assuming a mistake or a double-over of the channel.
During a seminar by Sam Zell on 25 March 2008, it was announced that Tribune Broadcasting (which Zell had acquired the previous year as part of his takeover of corporate parent Tribune Company) had signed an affiliation agreement with Fox for its San Diego CW affiliate KSWB-TV (channel 69). Fox cited concerns with having its programming airing on a Mexican-licensed station, even though XETV had been with the network since Fox's inception and had broadcast its programming almost entirely in English for over half a century. This caught XETV station management off guard as officials were unaware about the pending affiliation switch until the announcement was made public.
"Starved" and "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" were developed for FX under the auspices of FX president John Landgraf, who sought to expand the network's viewership by providing a wider variety of programming. The shows were the network's first attempts at sitcoms following the short-lived 2003 series "Lucky". FX at the time was known primarily for its edgy dramatic series. Bruce Lefkowitz, then executive vice president of Fox Cable Entertainment, outlined the strategy: "We kind of staked out a unique space in dramas that are very different from everybody else’s, so the next natural evolution is to do something in the comedy space." The network ordered seven episodes of each series.
Until the start of 2002, CNN was the number one cable news network in the ratings. FOX has been number one among cable news audiences since that point.
CBS became the most watched American broadcast television network once again in the 2005–06 season, an achievement that the network proclaimed in on-air promotions as being "America's Most Watched Network" (a term it would use again in the 2011–12 season). This lasted until the 2007–08 season, when Fox overtook CBS for first, becoming the first non-Big Three network to earn the title as the most watched network overall in the United States; despite CBS's continued strong lineup, Fox's first-place finish that season was primarily due to its reliance on "American Idol" (the longest reigning #1 prime time U.S. television program from 2004 to 2011) and the effects of the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike. CBS retook its place as the top-rated network in the 2008–09 season, where it has remained every season since. Fox and CBS, both having ranked as the highest rated of the major broadcast networks during the 2000s, tend to nearly equal one another in the 18–34, 18–49 and 25–54 demographics, with either network alternating in placing first in either of these groups by very close margins. "NCIS", which has been the flagship of CBS's Tuesday lineup for much of its run, became the network's highest-rated drama by the 2007–08 season.
On December 6, 2017, it was reported that Sinclair and Fox were working on a deal that would see its Fox affiliates renew their affiliation agreement in exchange for Sinclair selling some of its Fox affiliates directly to Fox Television Stations. The deal would see between six and ten Fox affiliates owned by Sinclair and Tribune (all in markets with an NFL team) become Fox owned-and-operated stations. It is not known if WUTV will be one of the stations sold, although the stations being sold to Fox are expected to be from Tribune Media (notably KCPQ in Seattle, where Sinclair already owns KOMO-TV), many of which were previously owned by Fox. A sale to Fox would make WUTV Buffalo's first Big Four network O&O since WBUF-TV (channel 17, now PBS member WNED-TV), which was owned by NBC from 1955 until its sign-off in 1958. On May 9, 2018, Sinclair announced that seven Fox affiliates would be sold to FTS, but WUTV was not included and an affiliation renewal was announced for that station instead, keeping WUTV with Sinclair.
FOX marked its 15th year as the highest-rated cable news channel in the same demographic, posting 2.8 million average total viewers in January 2017. MSNBC beat CNN in total primetime viewers, ranking sixth among all cable networks in January. CNN beat MSNBC, but trailed first place FOX News, in total daytime viewers.
In 1997, FX obtained partial pay-TV rights to Major League Baseball games; the channel initially aired game telecasts on Monday nights, before moving them to Saturday nights in 1998. In 2000, FX began sharing the Major League Baseball pay-TV rights with then-sister network Fox Family Channel (taking rights to the league's Thursday evening games from Fox Sports Net), with games being scheduled on an alternating basis with FX. Starting with the 2001 season, FX also obtained rights to games from the MLB Division Series, the only playoff round to which Fox did not hold television rights. Among the games televised on FX was Cal Ripken, Jr.'s final home game with the Baltimore Orioles in September 2001.
On December 6, 2017, reports stated that Sinclair and Fox were working on a deal that would see most of the Fox-affiliated stations whose affiliation contracts were set to expire at the end of the year renew said agreements, in exchange for Sinclair selling some Fox affiliates involved in the Tribune deal or already under the group's ownership directly to Fox Television Stations. The deal would see between six and ten Fox affiliates owned by Sinclair and Tribune in markets with an NFL franchise become Fox owned-and-operated stations. It is not known if WXIN will be one of the stations sold nor how the deal could be brokered with regards to its duopoly with WTTV/WTTK, although the stations being sold to Fox are expected to largely come from Tribune Media (notably KCPQ and its MyNetworkTV-affiliated sister KZJO in Seattle, where Sinclair already owns ABC affiliate KOMO-TV and Univision affiliate KUNS-TV), many of which were previously owned by Fox. (Sinclair may sell additional Fox affiliates to other groups not associated with the company to both address the aforementioned issues and the ownership conflicts that Sinclair and Tribune have in ten markets that largely would be excluded from the side deal with Fox.)
In prime time and total day ratings for the week of April 15 to 21, 2013, Fox News, propelled by its coverage of the Boston Marathon bombing, was the highest-ranked network on U.S. cable television, for the first time since August 2005, when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast of the United States. January 2014 marked Fox News's 145th consecutive month as the number one rated cable news channel. During that month, Fox News beat CNN and MSNBC combined in overall viewers in both prime time hours and the total day. In the third quarter of 2014, the network was the most-watched cable channel during prime time hours. During the final week of the campaign for the United States elections, 2014, Fox News had the highest ratings of any cable channel, news or otherwise. On election night itself, Fox News' coverage had higher ratings than that of any of the other five cable or network news sources among viewers between 25 and 54 years of age. The network hosted the first prime-time GOP candidates' forum of the 2016 campaign on August 6. The debate reached a record-breaking 24 million viewers, by far the largest audience ever for any cable news event.
Animax is the first television channel in Asia fully dedicated to broadcasting anime 24 hours a day. It was initially launched in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia in January 2004, and was launched in several other countries soon after. The company has reached over 66 million viewers spanning 15 markets throughout Asia. Since 2013, the network is unavailable in Vietnam due to government content restrictions.
On December 6, 2017, it was reported that Sinclair and Fox were working on a deal that would see its Fox affiliates renew their affiliation agreement in exchange for Sinclair selling some of its Fox affiliates directly to Fox Television Stations. The deal would have seen between six and ten Fox affiliates owned by Sinclair and Tribune (all in markets with an NFL team) become Fox owned-and-operated stations. It was not known if WZTV will be one of the stations sold, although the stations being sold to Fox were expected to be from Tribune Media (notably KCPQ in Seattle, where Sinclair already owns KOMO-TV), many of which were previously owned by Fox. On May 9, 2018, Sinclair announced that seven Fox affiliates would be sold to FTS, but WZTV was not included and an affiliation renewal was announced for that station instead, keeping WZTV with Sinclair.
When the rights were offered again in January 2006 for the 2007 to 2011 seasons, Seven formed an alliance with Ten and used its guaranteed last bid rights to match Nine's offer of $780 million to win back the broadcast rights in what was the biggest sport telecasting deal in Australian history at the time. After lengthy negotiations, Foxtel agreed to be a broadcast partner and now showed four live matches each week, although no longer on a dedicated AFL channel. Seven took back the Friday night match and only one game on Sunday, while Ten retained showing two matches on Saturdays. Foxtel showed two games on Saturday and two on Sunday, including a late afternoon or twilight game.
On December 6, 2017, it was reported that Sinclair and Fox were working on a deal that would see its Fox affiliates renew their affiliation agreement in exchange for Sinclair selling some of its Fox affiliates directly to Fox Television Stations. The deal would see between six and ten Fox affiliates owned by Sinclair and Tribune (all in markets with an NFL team) become Fox owned-and-operated stations. Originally speculated that WPGH-TV may be sold to Fox while Sinclair retained WPNT, it was later reported that WPNT might be included in the deal as well in order to keep the two stations together, which would make WPNT a MyNetworkTV owned-and-operated station. On May 9, 2018, Sinclair announced that seven Fox affiliates would be sold to FTS, but WPGH-TV was not included and an affiliation renewal was announced for that station instead, keeping WPGH-TV and WPNT with Sinclair.
FX aired selected NASCAR events from the NEXTEL Cup Series and NASCAR Busch Series from February to June of each year from 2001 to 2006 as part of Fox's NASCAR television package. However, coverage ended after the June 30, 2006 Busch Series race at Daytona International Speedway. When NASCAR signed its new contract effective in 2007, FX was left out as Fox retained its rights and gained the right to broadcast weather-delayed races that aired on the network.
The channel also aired one game in the Major League Baseball postseason from 2001 to 2005, on the first Wednesday night of League Championship Series week when MLB schedules two games at the same time. On that night, Fox distributed one game to local affiliates based on a regional coverage map, and the other game aired on the corresponding cable affiliate of FX, the main DirecTV or Dish Network channel, or an alternate channel on the satellite services.
Meanwhile, the Fox Broadcasting Company's other sister cable channel FX, aired numerous Saturday night Major League Baseball contests in 2001, including Cal Ripken, Jr.'s final game at Camden Yards. FX also aired one game in the Major League Baseball postseason each year from 2001 to 2005, on the first Wednesday night of League Championship Series week when the league scheduled two games at the same time. On that night, Fox distributed one game to local affiliates with the availability of coverage being based on region, and the other game aired on the corresponding cable affiliate of FX, the main DirecTV or Dish Network channel, or an alternate channel on the satellite providers.
AMC is an American pay television channel that is owned flagship property of AMC Networks. The channel's programming, similar to that of FXM, primarily consists of theatrically released films, along with a limited amount of original programming. The channel's name originally stood for "American Movie Classics", but since 2002 the full name has been de-emphasized as a result of a major shift in its programming.
On July 1, 2011, Cablevision spun off its subsidiary, formerly known as Rainbow Media LLC, into a new company named AMC Networks. AMC Networks owns several national cable networks including AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel, and WE tv. Wedding Central, a cable channel that was launched as a spin-off of WE tv in 2009, was also run by Rainbow Media. However, upon AMC Networks achieving its independence of Cablevision, the channel was shut down due to low ratings. Rainbow Media also controlled Fuse TV until 2010, when ownership was transferred to Cablevision's Madison Square Garden division, now operating independently as The Madison Square Garden Company (see above). The Rainbow Media subsidiary of Cablevision also operated a satellite television company called Voom, which was shut down on April 30, 2005, but lived on as a series of high-definition television channels named Voom HD Networks. They were available on Cablevision and iO digital cable until January 21, 2009. However, the 15 U.S. channels were eventually also shut down due to lack of distribution prior to the spinning off of Rainbow Media from Cablevision as the independent AMC Networks.
Because XETV-TDT is licensed to Tijuana by the Mexican government, it is not covered under the FCC's must carry rules. This means that local cable providers are not required to carry XETV-TDT, even if the television station requests to be carried under this provision. As an English-language station XETV had been carried by Cox Communications, Time Warner Cable (now Charter Spectrum) and AT&T U-verse in San Diego, all on channel 6. KFMB-TV's "The CW San Diego" has replaced XETV on the American cable systems, as well as satellite television providers DirecTV and Dish Network. XETV is carried by all Mexican cable systems in its coverage area, as carriage of local broadcast stations is mandated by the Federal Telecommunications Institute (IFT).
Effectively, the East, Mountain and West network feeds allow prime time on broadcast television networks to end at 10:00 p.m. Central and Mountain and 11:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific. When it first expanded its programming into prime time in April 1987, Fox became the first major broadcast network in the U.S. to offer a "common prime" schedule; this type of scheduling subtracts an hour from the prime time schedule, reducing it to two hours on Monday through Saturdays and three hours on Sundays – ending evening network programming earlier than NBC, CBS and ABC did – and continue to do (Fox did expand its Sunday primetime schedule into the 10:00 p.m. timeslot in September 1987, before giving back that hour to its stations in September 1993). The WB and UPN followed the "common prime" scheduling model when they both launched in January 1995; the replacements for those networks, The CW and the MyNetworkTV program service, similarly used that model upon their launches in September 2006.
The channel was launched on October 31, 2011 as FX Canada in standard and high definition. The channel was wholly owned by Rogers Media at its launch. However, on December 16, 2011, the CRTC approved an application for FX Networks to purchase a 20% interest in the channel's direct parent company, and a 16.7% interest in the holding company owning the other 80%, for an overall ownership interest of 33.6% (with Rogers retaining the remainder).
FX is a Canadian English-language Category B cable and satellite television specialty channel that is owned as a partnership between Rogers Media, a division of Rogers Communications (which owns a controlling 66.64% interest and serves as managing partner) and the FX Networks, subsidiary of 21st Century Fox (which owns the remaining 33.36%). Based on the U.S. cable network of the same name, FX is devoted primarily to scripted dramas and comedies.
John Phillip Landgraf (born May 20, 1962) is the Chief Executive Officer of FX Network and FX Productions. Previously he was President and General Manager of FX Network, a position he held since 2005. TV critic Alan Sepinwall jokingly refers to Landgraf as "the Mayor of TV".
FXX is an American pay television channel launched on 2 September 2013, owned by 21st Century Fox through FX Networks, LLC. It is the sister channel of the larger network, FX. The channel's programming focuses on original and acquired comedy series and feature films.