Best of the Web: Network news

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About The Press Pass A forum for spotlighting and commenting on the interesting, relevant and/or just plain weird coverage of SNL's sectors elsewhere in the media.

The "Best of the Web: Network news" Press Pass rounds up some of the more noteworthy recent coverage on broadcast and cable TV networks. Please note that some links may require a subscription.

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FX pulling its own weight

Strong growth continues to aid the FX Network on its quest to become "the HBO of basic cable," Variety reports on the channel's success, while highlighting that "FX still has a ways to go to approach the numbers of FOX."

The details behind TV Everywhere

Advertising Age outlines eight key points behind the industry's TV Everywhere initiative that were revealed at the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing Summit in Denver. Writer Andrew Hampp serves up details regarding the initiative's purpose and the goals it needs to meet to become a viable video-on-demand service.

Negotiations planned for US broadcast rights of future Games

The International Olympic Committee confirmed that negotiations on U.S. broadcast rights for the 2014 and 2016 Olympic Games will commence soon after the Vancouver Winter Games in February 2010, The Washington Post reports. The IOC postponed the U.S. rights negotiations earlier due to the global economic downturn. The American TV rights are the most lucrative single source of IOC marketing revenue, as NBC paid $2.2 billion for rights to the Vancouver Games and 2012 London Olympics.

Strong ratings for MSNBC's 10 p.m. repeats halt plans for introducing new program

The strong ratings generated by MSNBC's 10 p.m. rerun of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann," which also bested CNN's offering in the time slot, are encouraging the network to keep things as they are, according a report by The Associated Press. "We're looking, but nothing (new) has even come close to going in there at 10," Phil Griffin, MSNBC's chief executive, told the AP. "We've set the bar so high we don't want to break that success."

New contenders enter increasingly crowded domain of late-night talk shows

Comedians George Lopez, Mo'Nique and Wanda Sykes are promising to shake things up with their new late-night talk shows. The Wall Street Journal takes a closer look at what the three newcomers hope to bring to the table.

FCC ponders measures for stealth product placement in TV shows

Promoting branded products on broadcast television with strategically placed hard-to-read disclosures is prompting the FCC to consider rule amendments on the issue. According to The Washington Post blogger N.E. Marsden, "Any time a persuader can pay to embed messages in mass media without the public's full awareness, citizens are at risk."