Text 9348, 55 rader
Skriven 2006-10-13 16:03:58 av Joseph DeMartino
Ärende: Re: Further B5:TLT update from jms
==========================================
From: "Joseph DeMartino" <jdemarti@bellsouth.net>

Mac Breck (KoshN) wrote:

> If Crusade could be made today, with CGI on par with Battlestar
> Galactica (2003+), the results would be amazing.  Instead of some of
> the effects tending to take the viewer out of the show, the the viewer
> would be drawn in, and feel like they were there, actually witnessing
> the battle.  Wonder what the Battlestar Galactica budget is per
> episode, and how Sci-Fi is affording it.

Sci-Fi doesn't pay "BSG's" production budget, Universal does, they're
the studio producing the series.  Sci-Fi pays a license fee to air the
show.  Typically the license fee falls well short of the actual
production cost, so the studio makes up the difference and tries to
cover the deficit by selling into overseas markets or from eventual
syndication revenues.  (And nowadays through home video sales, although
until the advent of DVD that wasn't much of an option for U.S. shows.)
 "B5" and "Crusade" were exceptions to this rule.  WB's mandate for all
the PTEN series was that they pay for themselves as they went, while
Paramount was losing a small fortune on the various "Treks" until they
went into syndication and went out on home video.  ("Trek" having been
one of a handful of American dramatic TV series to actually enjoy
success on VHS and laserdisc.)

In the case of "BSG" Universal has a production partner covering at
least part of the costs - Britan's SkyTV.  Sky in turn has part of its
contribution covered by the license fee it charges its subsidiary to
air the program in the U.K.  Between the British contribution and
Sci-Fi's fee, Universal is probably at least breaking even on the
series, and if it isn't, that's what the DVDs are for.  (Contrary to
something stated in another reply Universal's corporate sibling NBC is
not involved with "BSG".)   Universal and Sci-Fi are corporate
siblings, of course, in a much more integrated company than
Time-Warner, but everybody still has to watch out for his/her budget,
even if the profits all ultimately end up in the same place.  "Heroes"
is similalry cross-financed between Universal Television, which
produces it, and the NBC network, Sci-Fi and USA, all of which pay
license fees to air it.

Remember that the *major* reason Sci-Fi passed on the "Rangers" pilot
was ownership and ancillary revenue sharing, not ratings.  Sci-Fi
wanted to own a piece of the show and the eventual foreign, syndication
and DVD revenues, WB has a policy against doing that sort of thing.
With "BSG" its all in the family, so to speak , so Sci-Fi basically got
the "B5"-style arc-drive space show that it wanted all along, only it
got one that its parent company owns and controls.  

Regards, 

Joe


--- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
 * Origin: *READ ONLY* rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated (3:640/1010)