Carrie Baker

BURBANK, CA, May 30, 2006 – One of the three networks devoted to GLBT shows and movies called it quits this week.  Q Network, which was part of Time Warner Cable’s lineup, decided to end its run due to financial problems.

There are still two other networks that cater to the GLBT community.  Here! Television network and LOGO (owned by MTV), are still up and running offering GLBT specific programming for audiences all over the country.

Time Warner has said that it will provide a refund for the final month’s subscription fee.  Triangle Media, Owner of Q, said in a release Thursday that it was forced to shut down due “to financial losses and a failure to find outside sponsors to continue to keep up with operations.”  One of the suspected problems has been attributed to lack of subscriptions because of a lack of promotion, due to a lack of funds.

The financial problems that have plagued Q since inception made it difficult to promote and upgrade programming to compete with the two other GLBT networks. Q Networks spokesperson Jeff Unaitis was quoted as saying, “Q just found itself in an already-overcrowded genre.” 

The demise of the network did not shock former employees. Chris Flynn, a former Q Television technical director and backup director, drove past the Burbank headquarters 10 days ago and found that the QTV sign had been removed. Former colleagues told him that the network had been liquidating its equipment; it was at that point that employees started to realize their jobs were over.  Time Warner had also been pulling Q off of the airwaves, market by market over the last week.

The lingering problems with Q network’s demise remain bitter.  Because the sponsors were few and far between, many of the employees and contractors are still, at this point, unpaid for their last month of work.  Vanessa Mayer, a former QTV graphics generator had this to say, “"We learned a wicked lesson to be wary about committing to a startup company, especially when it's unclear where their money is coming from.”
Bitterness and sadness aside, we in the GLBT community have at least two other networks to watch.  Hopefully as a minority group in the US our media possibilities will continue to grow in quality and quantity and we will be offered many different program choices with our interests in mind.