Two California-based public television businesses are merging. Link Media, the San Francisco-based parent of the Link TV satellite-distributed network and online international news portal, and KCET, the independent Los Angeles public television station that quit PBS last year, said they would join forces in a new venture known as KCETLink.
After the merger, effective Jan. 1, the two brands and most of their programming will remain separate. But Link TV, which airs cultural and news shows and series like the Danish import “Borgen,†will get an immediate visibility boost in Los Angeles, where KCET will begin to broadcast it on one its digital multicast channels.
Currently, Link TV is available in just 33 million DirecTV and Dish Network homes nationwide. “We have a bit of a cult following and we want it to be bigger,†said Paul S. Mason, Link TV's chief executive and president, who will be chief strategy officer of the new company.
Al Jerome, the he ad of KCET who will become the chief executive of KCETLink, said the merger would create a more sustainable economic model for both entities, and entice more production partners with the promise of both local and national distribution for shows, some of which may end up being shared between the two.
No money will change hands and the new company will be based at KCET's new Los Angeles headquarters. Between them, the two have about 150 employees and that number will be reduced as some business functions, including fund-raising, are consolidated, Mr. Jerome said.
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