Now that the Sci Fi channel has decided to call itself SyFy (and has been taking quite a bit of grief over the name change), the president of Sci Fi Dave Howe has decided to answer
a few questions about the change.
Why did you change your name in the first place? What's wrong with sci-fi?
Howe: There's nothing wrong with sci-fi, and we've had 16 great years as the SCI FI Channel. We love sci-fi, which is why we've said we have no intention of abandoning our roots or our core audience. We intend to continue to develop and produce great sci-fi shows like the two upcoming series we recently greenlit, Stargate Universe in the fall and Caprica, the prequel to Battlestar Galactica, coming early next year. Plus we're bringing back Eureka in July, Sanctuary in the fall and launching a brand-new sci-fi show, Warehouse 13, in July. We're still the biggest producer of sci-fi shows in all of TV, and we intend to stay number one.
Isn't this just an excuse to put more shows on that aren't sci-fi?
Howe: As the SCI FI Channel, we've always defined the sci-fi genre very broadly. Some of you may disagree, but we believe that sci-fi includes fantasy, supernatural, paranormal, superhero, horror and quite a lot of speculative action and adventure. Since we launched 16 years ago, we've always carried this broad range of sci-fi/fantasy programming on our air. So the mix of shows isn't new and won't change in the future.
The challenge for our brand is that many non-SCI FI Channel viewers think "sci-fi" is only about space, aliens and the future. (Those are the actual words many people use in focus groups.) They still only expect to see reruns of Star Trek on something called the SCI FI Channel.
So we believe that by evolving our branding, we'll be able to encourage more viewers to check us out and watch the broad range of shows on our air. And that includes our hit reality shows—such as Ghost Hunters and Destination Truth—which are rooted in the supernatural: ghosts, myths and legends. And because our new brand is less literal than the letters "sci-fi," it's actually catching up with our current range of programming and makes more sense to new viewers. And by expanding our audience, this will help us grow as a business.
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Without Stargate Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica on the network, what science fiction shows are left to watch?
Howe: Eureka will be back in July, and Sanctuary is back in the fall. A brand-new sci-fi series, Warehouse 13, debuts in July, and Stargate Universe premieres in the fall. Battlestar Galactica: The Plan, a two-hour event movie, will air in the fall, and the Battlestar prequel Caprica will premiere early in the new year. We think this is a fantastic lineup of new and returning sci-fi shows, and we're developing even more for the future.
We not big fans of the new name (it looks like it should be pronounced "siffy" and it's a pain to write), but we will continue to be fans of the channel even if they decide to change the name yet again in the future, to something even worse. Will the new name get new viewers? Clearly the focus groups say yes.
Now that the Sci Fi channel has decided to call itself SyFy (and has been taking quite a bit of grief over the name change), the president of Sci Fi Dave Howe has decided to answer
a few questions about the change.
