Evening UPN Bullets

According to an AP report, Viacom wouldn't comment yet on News Corp.'s acquisition of Chris-Craft, and how the possible loss of 8 UPN affiliates as a result of this would affect the network. As expected, however, there were still a few important news items regarding the takeover:

• TrekToday reader Suzanne decided to call Paramount Television to ask if UPN's problems also mean Voyager's final season will be in jeopardy. Someone at Paramount told her that this latest development will in no way affect Voyager's last season, and we will see all the new episodes to the very end.

  Of course, as shooting has already been completed on nearly a quarter of the final season's episodes, it seems highly unlikely they won't also be airing on television. Either through syndication deals or via possible temporary UPN deals with the Chris-Craft stations, everyone who is currently able to see the show will probably also be able to see it for the final season.

• Whether all these episodes will also be shown on UPN still isn't certain, though. According to an AP article, News Corp. president Peter Chernin made it clear to investors that the company has little interest in the future of UPN. "I'm not sure I know what will happen to it," said Chernin. "I don't think we care enormously. [...] Whether it's to be a UPN affiliate, whether it's to run these as independent stations, [we] have multiple ways to go."

• The AP report also mentions that without the 8 stations, UPN's national reach would drop from 87% to 67%, leaving out the crucial markets Los Angeles and New York, unless it would be able to find new affiliates.

• And finally, another AP report lists all the stations involved in the deal.

If you want to read more about this, TrekToday's original report and this morning's news items are still available. Thanks go out to Suzanne for calling Paramount about this!

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