BET Facing Stiff Competition

“BET, which is now a division of the media company Viacom Inc., has established itself with its target audience of young adult African Americans through a heavy rotation of music videos and reruns of old dramas and sitcoms. But that won’t be enough to sustain BET’s brand indefinitely, according to industry analysts and the company’s own leaders.”
(Washington Post)

“TV One and the Black Family Channel aren’t in enough households yet to be a factor, [new BET CEO Debra] Lee said. TV One reaches 18 million subscribers and the Black Family Channel reaches 30 million. That still leaves everyone else.

“What keeps me up at night is MTV, UPN . . . ABC and Fox’s ‘American Idol.’ Those are the ones that take viewership away,” said Lee, a Harvard Law School graduate who started her career as a telecommunications lawyer. Her clients included BET, and she was recruited to join the company 19 years ago as its general counsel.
To remain on top in today’s hypercompetitive environment, some say BET under Lee must come up with more compelling content.”

TheStateOf…Black Television. Lee indicates that BET will continue to target the teen and 20-something market, which is fine. But let’s hope they offer kids an alternative to run-of-the-mill rap videos. Hopefully, TVOne and the Black Family Channel will continue to grow and enter new markets.