Cable Biz News Race Heats Up

News Corp.’s start-up cable business news network is triggering a shuffle in Time Warner Cable’s flagship New York City system, where it launches Oct. 15. And in cable TV as in real estate, it’s all about location, location, location.

Fox Business Network has closed on its new home in the Big Apple: channel 43, which is currently occupied by MSNBC. FBN’s sister net Fox News Channel is moving in next door, relocating from channel 46 to channel 44 on the system.

"We’re thrilled with both channel locations and look forward to FBN being available in the world’s financial capital on Time Warner Cable’s dynamic line-up,” said FBN & FNC SVP of affiliate relations Tim Carry in a statement.

While Time Warner Cable is parking FBN at channel 43 in Manhattan, Staten Island, Queens and western Brooklyn including Park Slope, FBN will appear on channel 28 in Mount Vernon, NY; channel 121 in its upstate Hudson Valley systems; and channel 37 in New Jersey.

MSNBC, while being bumped, is pleased with its new TWCNYC abode: channel 14 (from 43), where it will cozy up to sister news net CNBC, which remains on channel 15.

NBC Universal also announced today that its other cable networks are relocating down TWCNYC’s basic cable lineup into the same, cushier neighborhood: USA is moving to channel 16 from channel 40; SCI FI moves to 17 from channel 44; and Bravo moves to channel 18 from its current slot at channel 38.

"These new positions are incredibly favorable for all our networks and will contribute to their continued success," said NBCU SVP of TV Networks Distribution Bradley Fleisher in a statement. "We’re thrilled with our partnership with Time Warner Cable in New York, which resulted in a fantastic upgrade."

Fox said today FBN will "currently" (so stay tuned for more distribution news) launch with 30 million subscribers across the country.

Besides Time Warner Cable, News Corp.’s nascent biz news net has distribution deals with Comcast, Charter Communications and DirecTV.

News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch is reportedly planning to rebrand FBN to reflect the company’s recent acquisition of the Wall Street Journal parent Dow Jones, which is locked into a multi-year TV deal with FBN rival CNBC.

Bloomberg Television, meanwhile, is preparing to take on FBN with an on-air makeover that will lose the crawl next month and play up talent such as Judy Woodruff, who moderates a monthly show.

Bloomberg recently expanded its distribution to Comcast’s New Jersey, South Florida and Washington markets and has been touting its appeal to affluent viewers.

NBCU-owned CNBC isn’t sitting idle. It’s sharpening its on-air programming, discussing sharing resources with the Financial Times and also playing up its affluent audience.

#14 MSNBC (from #43; now ABC Family)
#15 CNBC (no change)
#16 USA (from #40; now A&E)
#17 SCI FI (from #44; now History Channel)
#18 Bravo (from #38; now Discovery Channel)
#43 Fox Business Network (new; now MSNBC)
#44 Fox News Channel (from #46; now SCI FI)
#46 A&E (from #16; now Fox News Channel)
#66 Discovery Channel (from #18; now TMC: The Movie Channel)