[Jeffhs]

RTN has a long way to go before it is a true national cable TV network. I just looked at their affiliate map and am amazed. It has only one affiliate in Ohio, WNWO-DT in Toledo, and only one in Arizona, in Phoenix (KAZT-DT), to name but two examples. There are entire sections of the US, even large cities such as Chicago and New York City, that do not have any RTN affiliates whatsoever--yet. (I live near Cleveland, which does not yet have an RTN affiliate, OTA or on cable; when I had digital cable I could not find this network anywhere in the lineup.) I often wonder as well why New York City doesn't yet have an RTN affiliate, as NYC is the #1 television market in the country.

With so few affiliates, and some parts of the US having no RTN affiliates whatsoever, I'm surprised the network is still around. Most cable channels would have gone broke by now with this small number of affiliates. I would think RTN would be a very popular cable channel, with affiliates nearly everywhere, given the stuff that passes for comedy, etc. today on the broadcast networks. Hollywood made much better television shows 35+ years ago, IMHO, than they do now; what better place to show those old classics than on RTN?

Oh, well. If RTN is close to going dark (the affiliate map seems to be showing enough stations carrying the network, however, to justify keeping it going, at least for the near term), there are alternatives. Many classic TV shows (as well as many current network shows' past seasons) are now available on DVD, so it wouldn't surprise me if fewer people are watching classic shows on cable, turning instead to DVD. The price of DVD players has dropped drastically in the last 10 years or so, to the point where just about anyone who wants one can get one for his or her entertainment system. Blu-ray players are still quite expensive, but they too will come down in price eventually.

Whether or not DVD and/or digital cable's video on demand services will eventually kill basic cable channels such as TV Land and even movie channels like AMC or TCM, not to mention pay-cable movie channels such as HBO, Showtime and Cinemax, remains to be seen. I think of the very real possibility that these channels and services may someday be rendered obsolete by video on demand and DVD. The beauty of DVD is that viewers can have their own favorite shows to watch at will, without having to wait until these programs appear on cable. My own favorite classic shows (Kojak, Quincy, The Odd Couple, to name just three) disappeared from cable several years ago and almost never appear on broadcast TV anymore (Quincy and Magnum, P. I., not to mention The Rockford Files, used to be on one of Cleveland's UHF stations until about a year ago), but I'm enjoying them once again on DVD and even VHS these days (I have a collection of old movies and TV series I taped 25 years ago).

The day may come, sooner or later, when high-priced cable movie channels may very well disappear as video on demand becomes more widespread on digital cable, and more and more viewers get DVD players. What lies ahead for cable TV after that is anyone's guess.