By RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com, originally filed August 3, 2011
Atlanta-based Bounce TV, which targets African Americans, will debut Sept. 26 on a digital sub-channel operated by WATL-TV.
The network will launch primarily with movies such as "Philadelphia," "Do the Right Thing" and "Boyz 'n the Hood." It will air sports events through Urban Sports Entertainment Group for football and basketball games from the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
The digital subchannels have been around since 2009. For people without satellite or cable, the channel will be free. Cable and satellite channels usually air them as well, though not usually for basic subscribers.
Atlanta is the No. 2 market for African Americans. Bounce has been signing distribution deals across the country in markets with heavy black populations.
"We are thrilled to add Bounce TV to the growing list of media properties of the networks of 11Alive. Given that Atlanta is the birthplace of civil rights, we're confident that a network for African-Americans will be very well received within this market," said John Deushane, president and general manager of Gannett's WXIA-TV/WATL-TV, in a press release.
The company is majority owned and operated by African Americans, with Martin Luther King III and former U.N. ambassador and Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young part of the initial ownership team.
The network also announced its first national advertiser: Toyota USA.
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By Rodney Ho, rho@ajc.com, AJCRadioTV blog
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