Glenn Beck coming back to TV
Dish Network Corp. has reached a deal with Glenn Beck to bring his Internet-only video network to its satellite service, ending the conservative talk-show host’s hiatus from television.
TheBlaze TV, the streaming network Beck started last year, will operate as a 24-hour TV network available to Dish customers, Englewood, Colorado-based Dish said Wednesday in a statement. Customers who buy Dish’s 250-channel package will get TheBlaze TV as an included channel, and subscribers with smaller bundles can pay $5 a month for access.
Beck, 48, left News Corp.’s Fox News on June 30, 2011, to begin his subscription-based online TV network, originally called GBTV. The service, which features news and commentary, has more than 300,000 subscribers and will continue streaming over the Web, according to Beck’s site.
Beck’s show on Fox averaged 1.95 million viewers in the first quarter of 2011. While ratings had dropped 29 percent from a year earlier, the talk show was among the top 40 most-watched programs on cable.
TheBlaze TV has been contacted by other pay-TV providers for distribution, Christopher Balfe, CEO of the business, said in a blog post on Beck’s website. On Dish, the service will be offered on channel 212, starting Wednesday. It will be available as a free preview to all customers through Sept. 26.
Dish rose 0.4 percent to $32.70 at the close in New York. The shares have gained 15 percent this year.