American television network
"Youtoo" redirects here. For the toy company, see
Youtooz
.
Television channel
YTA TV
|
Headquarters
| Arlington, Texas
|
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|
Owner
| Center Post Media
|
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|
Launched
| February 1, 1985
; 39 years ago
(
February 1, 1985
)
|
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Replaced
| America One
(2014 merger)
|
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Former names
| - Nostalgia Channel (1985?90)
- Nostalgia Television (1990?97)
- Nostalgia Good TV (1997?98)
- GoodLife TV Network (1998?2005)
- AmericanLife TV Network (2005?11)
- Youtoo TV (2011?2014)
- Youtoo America (2014?2020)
|
---|
|
Website
| ytatv
.com
|
---|
YTA TV
(an
initialism
for its former full name,
Youtoo America
; commonly referred to as just
YTA
) is an American
television network
which originally launched in February 1985 as a cable channel.
[1]
Unusual for a network of its type, it has had multiple identities, programming directions, and brandings, along with owners, and after merging with the minor broadcast network
America One
in 2014, also began to air on
free over-the-air
television. It is owned by Center Post Media, which also owns Biz Television.
Approximately 41 million households have reception of YTA TV in some manner through cable or over-the-air reception. It is also available through streaming apps on various
digital media players
, and on its website.
Background
[
edit
]
Nostalgia Channel
[
edit
]
The channel was originally launched as a cable channel in February 1985 as The Nostalgia Channel through the efforts of former
Our Gang
child star
George "Spanky" McFarland
.
[1]
[2]
[3]
The channel featured vintage movies, similar to
American Movie Classics
, which debuted five months earlier as a premium channel broadcasting only during the afternoon and nighttime hours, and
Turner Classic Movies
, which would launch nine years later. Many of the films were in the
public domain
.
[1]
Michael E. Marcovsky was hired as network head in early 1990. He changed the channel's name to Nostalgia Television, removed movies with poor quality prints (primarily public domain movies), and added lifestyle series as well as vintage TV programs. Also, 100 movies were programmed from the eclectic
Janus Collection
. At this time, movies were 25% of the programming.
[1]
Unification Church
[
edit
]
In December 1993,
International Family Entertainment, Inc.
was bidding against a partnership of Florida-based
MOR Music TV
Inc. and Arizona-based Gen-She Inc., and
1
⁄
3
owner Concept Communications (owned by Unification Church) for the network.
[4]
Nostalgia Television changed its name to Nostalgia Good TV in 1997.
Nostalgia licensed the Goodlife trademark and changed its name to Goodlife TV in 1998 when
Unification Church
purchased the rest of the company. In 2004, Goodlife TV announced that it would sign a licensing agreement and partnership with
Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution
to broadcast its clssic television shows on the channel.
[5]
Following the expiration of the Goodlife licensing agreement in 2005 with no renewal, the channel changed names again to American Life TV (ALTV).
[2]
[6]
According to a June 2007 story in
Variety
, the network was a consistent money-loser, although the church's
tax-exempt status
made it easier to absorb the losses. The channel charged providers one of the lowest carriage fees in the industry (between 5-10¢), but despite this, was only available in 10 million households at that time. Comcast refused to carry the channel, citing the lack of quality programming (at that time, made up mainly of
public domain
programming and anachronistic sitcoms and dramas in barter arrangements, long dropped from higher-profile networks) and dropped it from the systems it acquired in the
Adelphia
bankruptcy as soon as contractually possible. Despite improving the quality of their programming by picking up the
Steven Bochco
series
L.A. Law
,
Hill Street Blues
,
St. Elsewhere
and
equity
for carriage, both
DirecTV
and
Dish
continued to refuse carriage.
[2]
In 2001, ALTV broadcast the Unification Church-sponsored film
Inchon
(1982), one of the few times it has been seen since its initial theatrical run.
[7]
In 2007 the network broadcast
George Clooney
's documentary,
A Journey to Darfur
.
[2]
[8]
[9]
It released the film on
DVD
in 2008 and announced that proceeds from its sale would be donated to the
International Rescue Committee
for its humanitarian efforts in
Darfur
.
[10]
In 2007, ALN made a
video on demand
deal with
TVN Entertainment Corporation
to offer up to 20 hours of programming per month to more than 100 cable affiliates.
[11]
ComStar
[
edit
]
In May 2009, the network was acquired by
ComStar Media Fund
, an organization chaired by
Robert A. Schuller
, son of
Crystal Cathedral
founder
Robert H. Schuller
. Schuller said that the network would concentrate on "family-values programming that speaks to all generations." On November 29 Schuller's new program
Everyday Life
was first seen on ALTV.
[12]
Chris Wyatt, ComStar's chief executive officer and founder of religious
website
Godtube
, commented: "We are not creating another religious network but rather a family-values channel. We've tapped into a huge underserved market and have the opportunity over time to increase distribution to exceed 40 million homes." Media reports indicated that the network's on-air presentation would change and that other syndicated series would be targeted for acquisition.
[13]
[14]
On December 1, 2009, ALN announced that it would start airing episodes of
Chuck Norris
'
World Combat League
, previously seen on the
Versus
network.
[15]
ComStar also has access to a library of classic television programing including
Happy Days
and
My Three Sons
.
[16]
Some of the older television shows moved from ALN to its sister network,
FamilyNet
on March 1, 2010,
[17]
when it was spun out into its own company with
Robert A. Schuller
as the chairman.
[18]
Youtoo
[
edit
]
On September 27, 2011, ALN was rebranded as
Youtoo TV
with a focus on mobile devices; as of that date, all links to the website redirected to a page inviting viewers to sign up for the new service at youtoo.com. The only "retro" programs remaining on the schedule are
Batman
,
The Green Hornet
, and
The X-Files
.
Executives claim Youtoo TV to be a
social television
service, allowing viewers to participate in television programming using personal electronic devices. Interactive features include the ability for viewers to create and submit 15-second videos, called "Fame Spots", commenting on a variety of subjects, which will air.
In addition, the network will carry programming such as
Howcast
and
Christopher Coppola
's
Digivangelist Show
. Also on the network will be new TV versions of Web series including
GeekBeat.TV
,
Koldcast
, and
Rooftop Media
. The network also will have interactive programs including
Say Yes & Marry Me
, which will offer viewers the opportunity to propose marriage on-air via Fame Spots.
[19]
Re-purposed programming from
Revision3
was removed from the network after that provider's sale to
Discovery Communications
in 2012.
One of the creators of Youtoo TV is producer
Mark Burnett
, through his own social media project, by content marketing studio VIMBY.
[20]
It was reported in September 2014 that Youtoo TV had acquired
America One
, its network of terrestrial (mostly
low-power
) affiliates, and most of its remaining, non-sports programming. (Prior to this, only one terrestrial affiliate,
WBQP-CD
, carried Youtoo over the air.) The merger was finalized in Spring 2015, with the resulting network becoming "Youtoo America". Over the course of late 2019 and early 2020, it began using the shortened branding of YTA, presumably due to confusion with
YouTube
and its similarly-named
YouTube TV
streaming service, and
channel drift
away from the 2011 social television model.
Carriage
[
edit
]
The network is available on
Time Warner Cable
and
Comcast
, among other providers.
Charter Communications
previously carried the channel until November 15, 2011, when the channel was dropped from Charter's lineups; this decision was made before the re-brand of ALN, as the channel received carriage under that provider's "faith and values"/religious tier of networks and no longer carried religious or family-appropriate programming for a majority of the broadcast day.
[19]
At the launch of Youtoo, the network offered up to $200 in bill credits to viewers who switched to a provider that offered the network.
[19]
As per an email sent to its subscribers,
Verizon FiOS
dropped the channel on December 31, 2012 along with
MAVTV
, and Blue Highways TV.
YTA TV offers a live feed of its programming on the Internet, along with some on-demand programming behind a soft
paywall
.
Programming
[
edit
]
YTA TV currently provides 20 hours of programming every day from 6:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. Eastern Time, with overnight hours being occupied by a simulcast of the shopping channel
Shop LC
.
Programming on YTA TV includes:
[21]
Affiliates
[
edit
]
Arizona
[
edit
]
Arkansas
[
edit
]
California
[
edit
]
Colorado
[
edit
]
Florida
[
edit
]
Georgia
[
edit
]
Illinois
[
edit
]
Indiana
[
edit
]
Kansas
[
edit
]
Louisiana
[
edit
]
Minnesota
[
edit
]
Missouri
[
edit
]
New York
[
edit
]
North Carolina
[
edit
]
Oregon
[
edit
]
Pennsylvania
[
edit
]
South Carolina
[
edit
]
| This section is empty.
You can help by
adding to it
.
(
May 2024
)
|
Texas
[
edit
]
Utah
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- Notes
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Film Appreciation : Basic and Pay Cable Channels Are Building Libraries of Classics For You To Check Out"
.
Los Angeles Times
. July 29, 1990
. Retrieved
June 3,
2012
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Dempsey, John (June 1, 2007).
"American Life TV Targets Baby Boomers"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
October 9,
2007
.
- ^
"TCM: Spanky McFarland"
.
Turner Classic Movies
. Retrieved
April 8,
2013
.
- ^
Lippman, John (December 7, 1993).
"Robertson May Open Bidding Battle for Network"
.
Loas Angeles Times
. Retrieved
January 13,
2016
.
- ^
"GoodLife TV Nrtwork Anounces 3-Year Programming Deal with Warner Bros. Domestic Cable Distribution"
(Press release). Warner Bros. September 20, 2004
. Retrieved
April 1,
2024
.
- ^
"GoodLife Becomes American Life"
.
Broadcasting & Cable
. January 9, 2005
. Retrieved
April 1,
2024
– via NextTV.
- ^
Hall, Phil (February 20, 2009). "The Bootleg Files: Inchon". Film Threat. www.filmthreat.com. Retrieved 2009-10-30.
- ^
"The Time 100: George Clooney"
.
- ^
"Clooney's Docu on Darfur to Air Monday"
Archived
November 1, 2008, at the
Wayback Machine
.
- ^
"AmericanLife TV Network (ALN) Donates Proceeds from
A Journey to Darfur
DVD to the International Rescue Committee"
Archived
January 13, 2009, at the
Wayback Machine
.
- ^
"AmericanLife Launches New VOD Offering"
.
Multichannel News
. September 2, 2007
. Retrieved
October 9,
2007
.
- ^
"Robert A. Schuller's TV Series Premieres Sunday"
. November 25, 2009.
- ^
"GodTube Founder Buys AmericanLife TV Network"
.
Broadcasting & Cable
. May 27, 2009
. Retrieved
May 27,
2009
.
- ^
"Dr. Robert A. Schuller and Chris Wyatt's Comstar Acquires AmericanLife TV Network"
.
ChristianNewsWire
(Press release). May 27, 2009
. Retrieved
May 27,
2009
.
- ^
"Chuck Norris' World Combat League to Air on AmericanLife TV Network(TM)"
. December 1, 2009.
- ^
"Schuller Media Company Expands Its Reach"
. December 8, 2009.
- ^
"FamilyNet March 2010 Schedule"
. January 27, 2010.
- ^
"Celebrated Televangelist Robert Schuller Named Chairman of FamilyNet TV"
. March 23, 2011.
- ^
a
b
c
Social-Media Focused Youtoo TV Replaces AmericanLife Net
Multichannel News
September 27, 2011
- ^
"Mark Burnett and YouToo.com Launch First Social Television Network"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. September 28, 2011.
- ^
"Shows"
.
YTA TV
. Retrieved
9 April
2022
.
- ^
List of Youtoo America Affiliates
. Rabbitears.info.
External links
[
edit
]
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Major
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Public
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Specialty
| Domestic news, business and weather
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International news
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Sports
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Minority
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Reality and lifestyle
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Music
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Legal & true crime
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Classic
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Films
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Comedy
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Westerns
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Drama & action
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Niche & genre
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Religious
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Home shopping
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Major commercial
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Minor commercial
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Public
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Specialty
| News
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Sports
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Home shopping
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Music
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c
- Now cable-only,
i
- Now internet-only,
d
- Dual feeds for channel in California, and nationwide
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Major domestic
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Minor domestic
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Major imported
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Religious
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Specialty
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Defunct
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TBN Networks
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English
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Spanish
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French
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Defunct
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Additional resources on North American television
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North America
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Canada
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Mexico
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United States
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