UPN (which originally stood for the United Paramount Network) is a television network in the United States, owned by Viacom Inc., which also owns a further far flung CBS network. Because of this dual corporate ownership, around many big Western cities, a local CBS & UPN stations come operated when "duopolies."

History

Paramount Pictures (the "P" within UPN) has played an polar role in the development of network television; it was the partner in the DuMont Television Network, and a Paramount Theaters chain, spun off from either a corporate/studio parent, was an early, significant component of the ABC television network's survival in the 1950s. In the wake up of the successful Universal Studios ad hoc syndicated package Operation Prime Instance (which featured number one the miniseries adaptation of John Jakes's novel The Bastard & went in to many other productions), Paramount experienced earliest contemplated its have television network by having a Paramount Television Service. Placed to launch inside Spring 1978, its programming would have consisted of single 1 nighttime the week. Thirty "Movies of the Week" would stand followed Star Trek: Phase II on Saturday nights. While a guide was processed to transform Phase Both into Star Trek: The Motion Picture, plans for the new Paramount network were scrapped.

However Paramount & its eventual parent Viacom didn't snub a possibility. Independent stations, possibly to a higher degree network affiliates, were feeling a growing pressure of audience erosion to cable television in the 1980s and 1990s, and there were unaffiliated commercial stations around virtually all of a major markets, at least, potentially when the foundation of Fox in 1987. Meanwhile, Paramount, yearn successful inside syndication using repetition of Star Trek and I Love Lucy, found itself sustaining many imposingly popular number one-do syndicated series per turn of the Nineties, inside Entertainment Tonight, The Arsenio Hall Show, Friday the 13th: The Series, and, perchance virtually 100% importantly of all, them freshly Star Trek franchises, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Meanwhile, Paramount got formed Paramount Stations Class action got been formed once it purchased the TVX Class action, which owned many independent stations inside major markets, a move non unlike that of the buy of the Metromedia Class action by Dodger many years antecedently. Everthing indicators suggested what was to are.

UPN was launched January 16, 1995, as a United Paramount Network, the joint venture between Paramount & Chris-Craft Industries. A "U" inside UPN come from either United Television, the Chris-Craft subsidiary. Two corporations owned independent stations inside many big cities in the United States. Both controlled 50 percent of the network. A number one telecast, them-hour pilot of Star Trek: Voyager, was an auspiciously widely viewed run; still, Voyager would never achieve such viewership levels over again, nor would any of the series debuting in UPN's 2nd nighttime of broadcasting endure a year. (2 years late, The WB Network would debut, with little joe series, lone one of which would non hold up its number 1 year.)

Inside 2000, Paramount's parent company, Viacom, bought out Chris-Craft's share to benefit 100% control of the venture. Shortly later on, Viacom dropped a "United" title for its recently network, opting to vary a official corporate title to exist as a 3-letter initials, "UPN." Viacom when well aimed to relaunch UPN when A Paramount Network, using a illustrious Paramount Pictures mountain logotype as the freshly network logotype. This idea was abandoned when several affiliates protested, citing that a newly stigmatisation will reason confusion & erode viewership. Late inside 2000, Viacom bought CBS, thus creating CBS-UPN duopolies around Philadelphia, Boston, San Francisco, Detroit, and Wilmington, North Carolina.

Chris-Craft late sold its television class action to Coyote. A low situated UPN's new around doubt, when it involved a network's flagship, WWOR-TV in New York, when well as West Coast flagship KCOP-TV in Los Angeles. Coyote later on bought a third-largest UPN affiliate, WPWR-TV in Chicago. A big owned-&-operated UPN station is WPSG-TV in Philadelphia.

Although considered the major network per Nielsen ratings, UPN is not (when of fall 2004) available in all areas of the United States. Inside a few areas, UPN programming is ostentate-pattern by affiliates of more networks. Occasionally affiliates stand as well been known to extensively preempt network programming sequentially to broadcast local sporting cases. These factors own led to a network struggling in the ratings across the preceding couple of years, sustaining its virtually all recent ST franchise, Star Trek: Enterprise, perhaps suffering the virtually all & finally existence cancelled per network inside a controversial guide around February 2005. A virtually all uniform ratings performing artist for the network has been their Thursday offering from either World Wrestling Entertainment (formerly a WWF), WWE SmackDown!. In the 2004-2005 season, a network was receiving systematically better ratings than the WB, tremendously of this thanks to the WWE. Executives at UPN likewise suggested victims equivalent-year Nielsen ratings will underrepresent a viewership of its core African-American audience, after noticing the 20% dip within key demographics for its African-American-oriented situation comedies early in the season.

That said, newly shows began to breaa life into the network starting inside Fall 2003 with ''America's Next Top Model, in Fall 2004 with Veronica Mars and Kevin Hill'' (starring Taye Diggs), and in Fall 2005 with Chris Rock's Everybody Hates Chris. Network executives keep around stated that UPN's todays desired demographic is young women & African-Americans. This was seen as a conducive factor out a guide to drop the Star Trek franchise, & keep close at hand decided does'nt to re-new their locate a WWE, departure a future of SmackDown beyond 2006 clouded. It was guessed around 2003 that UPN is viewable by 85.98% of all home, reaching 91,689,290 houses in the United States. UPN has about 143 good-power owned-&-operated or even primary affiliate stations in the U.S. & occasionally other 65 stations air some UPN programming when secondary affiliates.

Programming

A foremost official UPN network programming was a series Star Trek: Voyager. More early UPN computer software involved a action indicate Nowhere Man starring Bruce Greenwood, the action indicate Marker starring Richard Grieco, the action comedy Legend starring Richard Dean Anderson and the science fiction themed action indicate, A Sentry. When Voyager's 7-year rerun come to an prevent, UPN began broadcasting a recently Star Trek spin-off, Star Trek: Enterprise. UPN as well bought a rights to broadcast a popular television shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Clueless, and Roswell from 20th Century Fox and ABC after The WB cancelled the series.

A network likewise produced a few favorite computer program. For instance, it presented a Iron Chef USA program during Christmas 2001. UPN besides shows a WWE's Smackdown show, America's Next Top Model, Girlfriends, Veronica Mars, Everybody Hates Chris, loosely based on a childhood of comedian Chris Rock, and in the summertime of 2005 UPN aired R U the Girl, in which popular class actiin TLC searched for the woman to join the children on the recently song.

UPN has the newly policy of "not picking up other networks' scraps," which was the heavy argument once fan pressure was generated inside 2004 for the children to pick higher Angel, the spin-off of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Television Movies

Although it presently process the babies super seldom, UPN has produced the total of Television movies. About completely of the babies were Science-fiction, and mostly ran when you took a late 1990s. For the to the full names, look at Television Movies That Aired on UPN.

Notes
John Consoli, "UPN's Start-of-Week Blues", Mediaweek, October 25, 2004. According to Simon Cowell's life history it were offered American Idol before Fox & turned it down.