This article needs additional citations for verification .(March 2009) |
Type of site |
|
---|---|
Available in | English |
Owner | Nexstar Media Group |
URL | tvschedule |
Commercial | Yes |
Registration | Not mandatory |
Launched | April 3, 2000 |
Current status | Active (as of December 2023 [update] ) |
Zap2it is an American website and digital media company that provides television program listings information for areas of the United States and Canada. Founded in 2000 by Tribune Media Services, the site has been owned by Nexstar Media Group since 2019. Zap2it also provides syndication of its listings data to a number of broadcasting and multimedia companies (such as Disney and Sinclair Broadcast Group), pay television providers (such as Wave Broadband, Cox and Dish Network) and publications (such as The New York Times , the Los Angeles Times , and The Washington Post ) for use online and in interactive programming guides.
Tribune Media Services first began to offer online listings services as a content provider to the online services Prodigy in the late 1980s and America Online in the early 1990s. TMS launched its first branded online television listings service, TV Quest, in 1993 on the AppleLink online service. TV Quest later migrated to Apple's eWorld services and to the internet in the mid-1990s.
Version 1.0 of Zap2it debuted on the web in May 2000. In its earliest iteration, the site was a combination of TMS-owned listings sites TVQuest and MovieQuest plus the then-recently purchased content site UltimateTV.
UltimateTV offered viewers and industry insiders breaking news, Nielsen ratings, live celebrity chats and more. The site provided video clips, interviews and promos in its Promo Lounge area.
The earliest Zap2it focused on films, television and original web-based content. The site offered original editorials along with listings information for films, television and online. It also listed online content such as short films, interactive games and webisodes offered by Atom Films, Shockwave.com and iFilm.
Zap2it's television listings and film showtimes were generated by TMS data, with web listings by Yack data.
The site's editorial pages, including the front page, were redesigned in 2001. In early 2003, the editorial focus of Zap2it was narrowed down to television and films, and the site was again redesigned. An agreement with Fandango in 2005 allowed for the introduction of online movie ticketing for select theaters. Blogs, including It Happened Last Night, which offered show recaps, were first launched in 2006 and expanded thereafter. In 2007, the site launched "click-to-record" functionality allowing users with TiVo digital video recorders to remotely schedule recordings directly from within the Zap2it television listings.
The site launched TVOvermind, a blog dedicated to episodic recaps hosted as a subdomain on the Zap2it website, in 2008. It was later purchased by BC Media Group in 2012. [1] [2]
On October 3, 2016, the site was rebranded as Screener. [3]
In April 2017, Tribune Media announced the end of editorial content on Screener TV. No new editorial content has been added since. [4] By January 2018, the TV Listings section and TV by the Numbers were the only thing left on the site, as the site reverted to the Zap2it name. TV by the Numbers ended operations at the end of January 2020. [5]
In early 2007, Zap2it released enhanced television listings on its main site. Upgrades to the product included improved performance, better customization capabilities and the introduction of sharing tools and a user rating system. Following a testing period, the television-listings product was made available to affiliates.
In 2008, a revised movie-showtimes product was developed on the main site. It more prominently showcased movie trailers and offered expanded cast and crew lists which linked to celebrity profile pages.
In February 2009, Zap2it began to play an expanded role within the Tribune Company. [6] The site became the central aggregator of entertainment content produced by Tribune-owned online properties including latimes.com, The Envelope, chicagotribune.com and others. As part of this development, a major site redesign was planned for midyear 2009.[ needs update ]
Showtime is an American premium television network and the flagship property Showtime Networks, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Showtime's programming includes theatrically released motion pictures, original television series, boxing and mixed martial arts matches, occasional stand-up comedy specials, and made-for-TV movies.
Cinemax is an American pay television, cable, and satellite television network owned by the Home Box Office, Inc. subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Developed as a companion "maxi-pay" service complementing the offerings shown on parent network Home Box Office (HBO) and initially focusing on recent and classic films upon its launch on August 1, 1980. Programming featured on Cinemax currently consists primarily of recent and older theatrically released motion pictures, and original action series, as well as documentaries and special behind-the-scenes featurettes.
TV Guide is an American digital media company that provides television program listings information as well as entertainment and television-related news.
ZDNET is a business technology news website owned and operated by Red Ventures. The brand was founded on April 1, 1991, as a general interest technology portal from Ziff Davis and evolved into an enterprise IT-focused online publication.
Flix is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by Showtime Networks, a subsidiary of Paramount Global operated through its Paramount Media Networks division. Its programming consists solely of theatrically released motion pictures released from the 1970s to the present day, interspersed with some films from the 1950s and 1960s.
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, but also increasingly via digital terrestrial and streaming television. In the United States, subscription television began in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the form of encrypted analog over-the-air broadcast television which could be decrypted with special equipment. The concept rapidly expanded through the multi-channel transition and into the post-network era. Other parts of the world beyond the United States, such as France and Latin America have also offered encrypted analog terrestrial signals available for subscription.
Nick.com is a website owned and developed by Nickelodeon. The website previously served as an online portal for Nickelodeon content, and offered online games, video streaming, radio streaming and individual websites for each show it broadcasts. It now promotes the Nick mobile app which replaced it. Nick.com has received positive critical reaction and various awards, including a Webby in 2003. Positive praise has also been received because of the steps taken by the website to protect user privacy. Visits to the domain outside the United States are redirected to YTV in Canada, Nick.de in Germany or to the domestic network site of the visiting IP's nation or region due to programming licensing issues between territories.
FilmFlex, is an on-demand movie rental services provider, claiming to be largest outside the US.
In Demand is an American cable television service which provides video on demand services, including pay-per-view. Comcast, Cox Communications, and Charter Communications jointly own In Demand.
RTÉ.ie is the brand name and home of Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ)'s online activities. The site began publishing on 26 May 1996. According to RTÉ, it operates on an entirely commercial basis, receiving none of the licence fee which funds much of RTÉ's activity. The site, it says, is funded by advertising and section sponsorship. However, RTÉ has had to defend itself from allegations of anti-competitiveness brought about by licence fee support.
itv.com is the main website of ITV plc, the UK's largest commercial television broadcaster which operates 13 out of 15 regions on the ITV network under the ITV1 brand. The website offers the ITVX streaming service, with sections for ITV News, certain ITV1 programmes and competitions. STV, Which runs the only regions not owned by ITV plc, have their own separate website at stv.tv.
TV Guide is an American biweekly magazine that provides television program listings information as well as television-related news, celebrity interviews and gossip, film reviews, crossword puzzles, and, in some issues, horoscopes. The print magazine's operating company, TV Guide Magazine LLC, is owned by NTVB Media since 2015. The magazine was spun off from TV Guide in 2008 by then-owner Macrovision to OpenGate Capital for $1 and a $9.5 million loan.
This TV is an American free-to-air television network owned by Allen Media Broadcast Networks, LLC, part of the Allen Media Group division of Entertainment Studios. Originally formed in 2008 as a joint venture between Amazon's Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Weigel Broadcasting, the network maintains a large programming emphasis on films, but also airs other limited general entertainment content in the form of classic television series and children's programming.
Antenna TV is an American digital television network owned by Nexstar Media Group. The network's programming consists of classic television series, primarily sitcoms, from the 1950s to the 1990s. Antenna TV's programming and advertising operations are headquartered in the WGN-TV studios in Chicago. The network's operations are overseen by Sean Compton, who serves as the president of networks for Nexstar.
MGM+, formerly known as Epix, is an American premium cable and satellite television network owned by the MGMPlus Entertainment subsidiary of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), which is itself a subsidiary of Amazon MGM Studios. The channel's programming consists of recent and older theatrically released motion pictures, original television series, documentaries, and music and comedy specials.
Clicker was an Internet video directory and search company based in Los Angeles, California. Their website aimed to be the TV Guide for all full episodes of programs available to watch on the Web. It is owned by CBS Interactive.
Hollywood.com is an entertainment news website covering popular culture topics including movies, television, music and celebrities. Hollywood.com is principally owned by Mitchell Rubenstein and Laurie S. Silvers, who previously founded Sci-Fi Channel.
TMS is an international provider of data for TV and movies. As part of its On Entertainment product line, the company supplies data to companies such as TiVo, Roku, Virgin Media, DIRECTV and Time Warner Cable to enable entertainment guides and applications. In addition, the metadata is used for media measurement and analysis. TMS also produces Zap2it, a social TV hub that connects entertainment fans to popular TV shows, movies, celebrities, and other fans. TMS is a data provider for over 4,000 companies. The company is headquartered in upstate New York.
Crave is a Canadian subscription video on demand service owned by Bell Media. The service competes directly with other subscription-based over-the-top streaming services operating in Canada, primarily against American-based services.
Paramount+ is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Paramount Global. The service's content is drawn primarily from the libraries of CBS Media Ventures, CBS Studios, Paramount Media Networks, and Paramount Pictures, while also including original series and films, live streaming sports coverage, and in the United States, live streaming of local CBS broadcast stations.