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The other time TV Guide tried a larger format

C

ccmfan

Guest
I was going through some things recently and and found an issue of TV Guide from the time when they were testing a larger format in 1991. I picked it up in Nashville, which was one of the cities where they were testing it, in Sept. 1991. They didn't really make any big changes other than to print everything that was in the smaller issues laid out to fit the larger format, and they still had local schedules. I really wanted to get a copy of the Fall Preview in that format, but missed it by a week or two.

Does anyone have any more information on how long this format was tested and what other cities besides Nashville had it, along with any other information? Thanks!<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by ccmfan on 09/15/05 04:05 PM.</FONT></P>
 
Forgetaboutit ! TV GUIDE will be out of business by this time next year.
Too much T&A Covers and NOTHING inside. The listing are crap and often inaccurate. Why pay for TV GUIDE when most cable outlets provide all the information for FREE.

TV GUIDE did it to themselves by lowering its standards. Even their best writers have jumped ship.

TV GUIDE is CRAP. Time for it to turn the lights out.


> I was going through some things recently and and found an
> issue of TV Guide from the time when they were testing a
> larger format in 1991. I picked it up in Nashville, which
> was one of the cities where they were testing it, in Sept.
> 1991. They didn't really make any big changes other than to
> print everything that was in the smaller issues laid out to
> fit the larger format, and they still had local schedules. I
> really wanted to get a copy of the Fall Preview in that
> format, but missed it by a week or two.
>
> Does anyone have any more information on how long this
> format was tested and what other cities besides Nashville
> had it, along with any other information? Thanks!
>
 
> > I was going through some things recently and and found an
> > issue of TV Guide from the time when they were testing a
> > larger format in 1991. I picked it up in Nashville, which
> > was one of the cities where they were testing it, in Sept.
>
> > 1991. They didn't really make any big changes other than
> to
> > print everything that was in the smaller issues laid out
> to
> > fit the larger format, and they still had local schedules.
> I
> > really wanted to get a copy of the Fall Preview in that
> > format, but missed it by a week or two.
> >
> > Does anyone have any more information on how long this
> > format was tested and what other cities besides Nashville
> > had it, along with any other information? Thanks!
> >
>
I had an subscription to TV Guide during that time period and I recieved the larger format in the mail. The people who subscribed to TV Guide in the Nashville got the larger format for, iirc, about eight to ten weeks before going back to the regular sized format. Since I got mine in the mail, I never paid attention to how long the news stands went with the larger versions in Nashville before going back to the regular format.
 
> Forgetaboutit ! TV GUIDE will be out of business by this
> time next year.
> Too much T&A Covers and NOTHING inside. The listing are crap
> and often inaccurate. Why pay for TV GUIDE when most cable
> outlets provide all the information for FREE.
>
> TV GUIDE did it to themselves by lowering its standards.
> Even their best writers have jumped ship.
>
> TV GUIDE is CRAP. Time for it to turn the lights out.
>

I was just in Boston and my motel room had a copy of TV Guide in it. I think I saw what the listings are going to look like in the future. No channel numbers. Just listings for NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, PBS etc. For the local times it listed it as "local prgraming" For example: CBS 4:00 Local programing 2:30. 6:30 CBS News. 7:00 Local prgraming 1:00. 11:00 Local programing :35. I'm glad my subscription is running out soon.
>
>
 
> I was just in Boston and my motel room had a copy of TV
> Guide in it. I think I saw what the listings are going to
> look like in the future. No channel numbers. Just listings
> for NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, PBS etc. For the local times it
> listed it as "local prgraming" For example: CBS 4:00 Local
> programing 2:30. 6:30 CBS News. 7:00 Local prgraming 1:00.
> 11:00 Local programing :35. I'm glad my subscription is
> running out soon.

That's the so-called "National" edition, specifically for hotels.

The DirecTV edition treats the broadcast networks the same way.<P ID="signature">______________


</P>
 
> That's the so-called "National" edition, specifically for
> hotels.
>
Of course, it'll get even worse for the "hotel editions" -- it currently has 4 such editions (one for each time zone), but will be reduced to two, Eastern and pacific, when the new TVG is launched.
 
And the new listings, if I understand, won't look at all like the old ones. They'll be all grids, in color, similar in some ways to how TV listings in the UK are an afterthought in the back of many magazines. The new TV Guide isn't about listings, I'm afraid.

I wonder what will become of the DirecTV editions of TV Guide... I assume they're history.



> > That's the so-called "National" edition, specifically for
> > hotels.
> >
> Of course, it'll get even worse for the "hotel editions" --
> it currently has 4 such editions (one for each time zone),
> but will be reduced to two, Eastern and pacific, when the
> new TVG is launched.
>
 
> And the new listings, if I understand, won't look at all
> like the old ones. They'll be all grids, in color, similar
> in some ways to how TV listings in the UK are an
> afterthought in the back of many magazines. The new TV Guide
> isn't about listings, I'm afraid.
>
> I wonder what will become of the DirecTV editions of TV
> Guide... I assume they're history.


I think the last redo is what did TV guide in completely...

Even though the internet,local newspaper TV guides and on demand listings from the cable company/Sat provider.. I think people in most areas enjoyed the magazine and the fact that the listings could be right on and describe the shows.(unlike other places)..even though in some guides it was hard with one issue covering half a state or better

However, a lot of the primetime went grid to grow for the amout of cable channels appearing..I can understand that but some people enjoyed the descriptions.

But what killed it was (other than the price ouch!) was going from the traditional saturday to Friday listings for 40 some odd years I beleive to the current Sunday to Satuday listings.... In my area we used to get the next week's issue on Tuesday before... At least you know you had next weeks already..Now I'm finding them on selves due to their very late appearance in the area now for up to 2 and 3 weeks after their press date.

Shame what it's become..espcially with them trying to get issues for almost every cable system too that killed it...

RFLA
 
> > And the new listings, if I understand, won't look at all
> > like the old ones. They'll be all grids, in color, similar
>
> > in some ways to how TV listings in the UK are an
> > afterthought in the back of many magazines. The new TV
> Guide
> > isn't about listings, I'm afraid.
> >
> > I wonder what will become of the DirecTV editions of TV
> > Guide... I assume they're history.
>
>
> I think the last redo is what did TV guide in completely...
>
> Even though the internet,local newspaper TV guides and on
> demand listings from the cable company/Sat provider.. I
> think people in most areas enjoyed the magazine and the fact
> that the listings could be right on and describe the
> shows.(unlike other places)..even though in some guides it
> was hard with one issue covering half a state or better
>
> However, a lot of the primetime went grid to grow for the
> amout of cable channels appearing..I can understand that but
> some people enjoyed the descriptions.
>
> But what killed it was (other than the price ouch!) was
> going from the traditional saturday to Friday listings for
> 40 some odd years I beleive to the current Sunday to Satuday
> listings.... In my area we used to get the next week's issue
> on Tuesday before... At least you know you had next weeks
> already..Now I'm finding them on selves due to their very
> late appearance in the area now for up to 2 and 3 weeks
> after their press date.
>
> Shame what it's become..espcially with them trying to get
> issues for almost every cable system too that killed it...
>
> RFLA
>

Along with changing the schedules to Sunday through Saturday, they also moved the issue date to stores to Thursday. In my area this made it where only a few larger stores like Wal Mart and Kroger that got deliveries on Thursday or Friday might get the new issues, but the distributors made no effort to get them in anywhere else before the next Monday or even later, so at least Sunday and sometimes even up to Wednesday were useless since they had already passed. That had to kill a lot of sales in stores. If I hadn't gotten deals for subscriptions at 25 or 50 cents I would have quit getting them several years ago. It's appropriate that my current subscription will run out next month, and I'll never renew it again.
 
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