Cablevision debuts ‘Newsday TV’ on Long Island

Cory Bergman August 11th, 2008

Cablevision recently completed its acquisition of Newsday, and now Long Island digital cable customers can subscribe to the newspaper via “Newsday TV.” Here’s a TV screen grab of the landing page…

“With an on-screen subscription form that is pre-populated for each customer by virtue of our ongoing relationship, our customers can complete a transaction and subscribe to Newsday’s award-winning coverage with just a few clicks of the television remote control,” explains John Trierweiler, Cablevision’s SVP of product management. The interface also features some of the newspapers long-form videos, but it’s largely designed to drive print subscriptions. More info in the press release below…

PRESS RELEASE – Cablevision Systems Corp., (NYSE: CVC) today announced the successful launch of a new interactive Newsday subscription channel, Newsday TV, which allows iO TV® digital cable customers on Long Island to instantly subscribe to Newsday, using a convenient on-screen order form that is already populated with a customer’s name and address.

Located on Channel 611, the Newsday channel features both 7-day and weekend delivery options (Thursday, Friday and Sunday), and promotional information on the paper’s various sections and benefits, including local news, sports, Long Island Home, area coupons, the Explore LI feature section and classifieds. Also available through the channel are long-form videos of some recent Newsday stories, and information on the paper’s “Newsday Insider” benefit program for subscribers.

“We’re pleased to make it easier than ever before for our cable television customers on Long Island to subscribe to Long Island’s daily newspaper, Newsday, through the launch of Newsday TV,” said John Trierweiler, Cablevision’s senior vice president of product management. “With an on-screen subscription form that is pre-populated for each customer by virtue of our ongoing relationship, our customers can complete a transaction and subscribe to Newsday’s award-winning coverage with just a few clicks of the television remote control.”

Cablevision plans to promote the new channel to its Long Island cable customers, through television commercials, on-screen banners and other marketing tactics. When viewers hit the “subscribe” button on the channel, they are taken to a form that includes all of their own subscription information – name, address, town, zip code and phone number – and a drop-down menu from which to select a specific subscription option. Newsday will bill the customer separately, starting shortly after the subscription begins.

The channel launched earlier this month, just days after Cablevision completed the acquisition of 97 percent of Newsday Media Group (“Newsday”) through the formation of a new partnership with Tribune Company.