Encore (Premium TV)
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| Type | Cable network (movies) |
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| Country | United States |
| Availability | National |
| Owner | Starz Entertainment (Liberty Media) |
| Launch date | April 1, 1991 |
| Website http://www.encoretv.com/ |
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Encore is a US pay TV network which exclusively features mainly first-run as well as past motion pictures. It is owned by Starz Entertainment, a division of Liberty Media.
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[edit] History
Encore was launched on April 1, 1991, primarily on TCI cable systems (both it and Liberty Media were controlled by John Malone). Initially, the channel's focus was on movies made primarily in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, and was formatted similarly to American Movie Classics, with hosted introductions to the movies. Junctions on Encore were quite lively, consisting less of promotions and more of trivia and nostalgia, fitting in with Encore's motto "The Movies of Your Life." There was even a segment that let viewers know the movies that were playing on the *other* premium networks. As the channel aged, it adopted a more conventional presentation style, and in 1999 the channel shifted its focus to hit movies, primarily recent ones but with notable classics mixed in as well. Encore used to identify itself as guaranteeing to air a great movie every night.
[edit] Encore Multiplex
Encore operates seven multiplex channels:
- Encore: the main "flagship" feed; blockbuster movies & first-run films
- Encore Action: Action movies, martial arts films and anime, formerly Action
- Encore Drama: Powerful stories, movies that are based on true events and historical retrospectives, formerly True Stories
- Encore Love: Love stories and romance flicks, formerly Love Stories
- Encore Mystery: Mystery and suspense films as well as detective movies & series and film noir, formerly Mystery
- Encore Wam: Targeted at teens, features films and series for young audiences, including family movies, formerly WAM! America's Kidz Network
- Encore Westerns: Western movies and popular series from classics to contemporary favourites, formerly Westerns
On February 1, 1994, Encore launched the industry's first "themed" network - 7 additional channels that each focused on a specific genre. Initially this was to be six networks, but Encore decided to launch its own competitor to HBO and Showtime, dubbed Starz!, acquiring the rights to first-run Universal Studios films.
Each was given its own number to identify itself as an Encore channel:
- Encore 2: Love Stories
- Encore 3: Westerns
- Encore 4: Mystery
- Encore 5: Action
- Encore 6: True Stories
- Encore 7: WAM! - America's Youth (later, "Kidz") Network
- Encore 8: STARZ!
In 1996, Encore abandoned the numbering system for most of its channels, using the tagline "an encore network" instead until the early 2000s. For some affiliates, the notable exception was Starz, which continued to use "Encore 8" branding in its main idents and movie openers until 2002, even as Starz was long-since separated entirely from the Encore brand and by that time, given its own family of networks.
On March 28, 2005, the entire Multiplex was revamped to bring the individual channels back in line with the overall Encore brand, due to focus tests that revealed that viewers did not know the themed channels were part of the Encore network. Three Encore channels changed their names as well: True Stories became Encore Drama, Love Stories became Encore Love, and WAM!:America's Kidz Network became simply Encore Wam.
The Multiplex has been given several names over the years, including "Encore Multiplex", "Encore Movie Networks", "Starz Encore Super Pak", and "Starz Super Pak." It now has no "official" name, and viewers are simply told they are watching "one of the seven Encore channels," though some affiliates brand it the "Encore Movie Pak."
An unofficial name for the entire collection of Starz and Encore networks is the Starz Moviepack, a name used for the package by Dish Network and "Starz Super Pak" still remains in use by some others.
[edit] Other Encore Services
Starz Entertainment operates a channel called MOVIEplex that highlights offerings from the Encore multiplex channels - spotlighting a different one each day of the week. It is basically an ongoing "free preview" for interested Encore subscribers. Movieplex underwent a rebrand earlier in the year and added two additional channels of its own, IndiePlex and RetroPlex (which has a similar format to the pre-1999 Encore, though with much older content). While the two new channels have their own independent schedules, MoviePlex continues to feature its "free preview" format.
Encore also launched its own "on demand" service around the end of 2005, to complement Starz on Demand.
The channel previously had a high-definition television service, Encore HD, but it was discontinued on March 28, 2005.
[edit] Branding
Encore's signature logo is a starburst mark. In the original logo, the mark was contained within the "O" of the channel's name - it was then revamped into a box design for the channel's 1994 rebrand. The logo was simplified for the 1999 rebrand, removing the box design and turning the starburst into a line artwork above the "encore" text; the basic design was carried over in the 2005 revamp.
[edit] Movies
Since Encore's company, Starz Entertainment, has exclusive first-run output deals with Sony (through affiliates Columbia, Revolution Studios, and Sony Pictures Classics), Disney (and its various affiliate studios), and old deal with Universal and New Line that have extended windows of content still yet to air, sub-runs of the studios' movies during Starz's term of license appear on Encore and its sister networks, in addition to continuing showings on brother network Starz.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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