Ryan Seacrest Joining Mark Cuban in AXS TV

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Goodbye, Girls Gone Wild.

Mark Cuban’s often hard-to-find HDNet is getting a major programming overhaul and distribution boost via a new deal spearheaded by Ryan Seacrest, says The Hollywood Reporter. The rebranded channel will be called AXS TV (pronounced “access”) and will launch this summer.

Seacrest is a major partner in the deal, along with talent-agency behemoth CAA and music-venue owner and and tour promoter AEG. The channel adds to Seacrest’s burgeoning media empire, but the wildly popular reality-TV host will not appear on-camera.

Dan Rather Reports will remain from the old line-up, but much of HDNet’s male-focused fare will be replaced by live lifestyle, music and other pop-culture entertainment programming.

The new network will continue to be distributed by DirecTV (NASDAQ:DTV), Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA), Verizon (NYSE:VZ), AT&T (NYSE:T), Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR) and Dish Network (NASDAQ:DISH). But Dish has agreed to expand its carriage, making AXS TV part of America’s Top 120 programming package as well as offering a wide selection of AXS-branded video-on-demand concerts and ticketing opportunities.

Get all the details at The Hollywood Reporter.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2012/01/cubans-hdnet-becoming-axs-tv/.

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