News Broadcasting
MyNetworkTV, Sinclair Broadcast enter into affiliate agreement
MUMBAI: Foxs new primetime television network MyNetworkTV has secured affiliate agreements with Sinclair Broadcast Group to launch the network on 5 September 2006.
The announcement was jointly made today by Fox Television Stations CEO Jack Abernethy and Sinclair Broadcast Group president and CEO David Smith.
A total of 17 stations covering 11.9 per cent of the US owned or operated by Sinclair will officially become MyNetworkTV affiliates.
These include WTTA/Tampa, WCWB/Pittsburgh, WRDC/Raleigh, WUXP/Nashville, WCGV/Milwaukee, WSTR/Cincinnati, WBSC/Greenville, KRRT/San Antonio, WABM/Birmingham, WTVZ/ Norfolk, WNYO/Buffalo, WUPN/Greensboro, KVWB/Las Vegas, WFGX/Mobile, WMMP/Charleston, SC, WDKA/Paducah and WNYS/Syracuse.
These Sinclair stations join Fox Television Stations WWOR/New York, KCOP/Los Angeles, WPWR/ Chicago, KDFI/Dallas, WDCA/Washington, D.C., KTXH/Houston, WFTC/Minneapolis, KUTP/Phoenix, WRBW/ Orlando and WUTB/Baltimore.
Sinclair is operated by some of the smartest people in the business. Their decision to become MyNetworkTV affiliates further endorses our approach to provide local broadcasters with network programming and a business model required to succeed in todays converging digital marketplace, said Abernethy.
Smith added, We are excited once again to be part of the birth of a new network. We believe that over time this new network model will become a standard in the industry. The advantages MyNetworkTV provides to our stations are compelling, with both a creative programming model for our viewers and a favourable inventory split. We are especially excited about the Internet opportunities that will exist at the local level within this new paradigm.
MyNetworkTV will program 12 hours of original programming Monday through Saturday. Station-friendly by design, MyNetworkTV will enable broadcasters with significant operational flexibility and a seamless flow of original primetime programming. The networks pro-station strategy also intends to strengthen consumer recognition and increase viewership with powerful marketing initiatives conceived to unify the networks brand on both the national and local levels.
News Broadcasting
Book Cricket gets a digital century on News18 amid T20 fever
Nostalgic classroom game revamped in English, Hindi plus Telugu on web and app.
MUMBAI: When the T20 World Cup fever hits fever pitch, News18 decides to flip the script straight back to the classroom. The digital news platform has revived the timeless schoolyard favourite Book Cricket as an interactive online game, perfectly timed to ride the cricket wave gripping fans across the globe. The reimagined Book Cricket ditches textbooks for smartphones, blending old-school nostalgia with modern gameplay. Once a sneaky recess pastime played by flicking book pages to score runs, the digital version now offers seamless fun for anyone craving a quick cricket fix between overs.
Available in English, Hindi and Telugu (with more languages planned across News18’s network), the game sits within the platform’s fast-growing gaming portfolio of over 20 titles, all built in-house. It joins event-driven hits like ‘Kursi Catcher’ and ‘Result Rewind’ during the 2025 Bihar Assembly Elections, plus festive specials such as ‘Durga’s Astras’ for Durga Puja and ‘Mouse Modak’ for Ganesh Chaturthi.
News18 Digital CEO Mitul Sangani said, “Gaming is a key pillar of our engagement strategy. At News18, we uniquely combine our newsroom agility with immersive gaming experiences. By blending credible content with interactive formats, we are creating meaningful engagement in an era defined by shrinking attention spans and evolving consumption habits.”
Select titles have expanded beyond News18.com to CNBC-TV18.com and Firstpost.com, reflecting the network’s push to deepen user interaction across platforms. The Book Cricket game is live now at https://www.news18.com/games/book-cricket/.
In a tournament where every boundary counts, News18’s digital Book Cricket proves the simplest games can still deliver the biggest smiles no syllabus required, just pure cricket joy one page-flip at a time.
