Sci Fi / SyFy switch takes effect tomorrow, still doesn't make any sense
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
D-Whizzle @ Jul 6th 2009 8:15PM
ignoring.
jordanpope3 @ Jul 6th 2009 8:19PM
i heard that the reason for the rebrand was because the name Sci Fi could not be copyrighted because it is a genre.
matt @ Jul 8th 2009 8:09PM
You can't copyright a name. The issue would be with trademarks, and SciFi might have wanted to avoid dilution with the prevalence of DVRs.
Until a few years ago, anything that said "SciFi" on screen was the channel. Now you can search by genre, pull up program information, etc. SyFy might just be easier for them to control. Whether that's the actual reason they changed their name, who knows.
PuBeLeSs @ Jul 6th 2009 8:53PM
kinda gives me a valid reason to know hate the channel i have always hated for no reason.
kcmurphy88 @ Jul 6th 2009 8:53PM
Why didn't they just call it GrmmphqTV then?
Andrew @ Jul 6th 2009 8:56PM
As much as I hate to say it, this is probably going to be a good move for them. There was an article I read that said they did a bunch of 'brand research' and people liked syfy.
miko34 @ Jul 6th 2009 9:15PM
Although I really don't care either way, but there is more than one reason for it.
1) what was stated earlier ... so that they can trademark it.
2) it's only 4 letters, so it fits better on Tivo and satellite/cable listings.
3) it's free advertising for the network on news and blogs like this, so the one or two people who haven't heard of it can get an interest.
4) it's easier to search SyFy only stuff on Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc.
5) they can now put on a bunch of crap that has nothing to do with sci-fi or Sci-Fi ... (i.e. a reality show about a couple that wants to adopt a lizard baby as their own child.)
Okay, SyFy ... put new Reaper and Pushing Daisies episodes on it and I don't care what you call it, I'll tune in.
Will Maitner @ Jul 6th 2009 9:23PM
I really hate the idea of SciFi channel now. Ever since the wrestling was added, it reminds me of when Comcast bought TechTV and merged it with G4. SyFy's new management proved that they have no idea about SciFi when they canceled both StarGates, decided to do a new one, with a huge break between them. Nothing like cooling off the audience to a mythology to add to a show's ratings.
J @ Jul 6th 2009 10:14PM
First I heard of it.
Should have changed to "All Fi" or "The Fiction Channel".
oversight68 @ Jul 6th 2009 10:20PM
The management at SciFi has proven time and time again they don't understand, nor do they give a rats ass about the Science Fiction genre. Canceling their best scripted shows, grabbing the rights to any F grade killer disaster/reptile/insect/horror schlock movie they can get their mitts on, while constantly pushing mind numbing reality crap to try and expand/skew their demographics to teenage males (wrestling anyone?). News to the SciFi people...Spike has you beat hands down.
The entire lot of morons, particularly Bonnie Hammer, have their asses kicked to the curb w/out their golden parachutes.
I used to watch SciFi on a regular basis. Now I rarely watch.
Bryce Dechert @ Jul 7th 2009 3:19AM
+1 to what he said
...and -109,348,257,578 for the channel that ditched awesomeness like
the Fireflys and Stargates and others
miko34 @ Jul 7th 2009 5:38AM
I thought "wrestling" was science fiction.
Isn't it genetically altered humanoids fighting in a fictional written soap opera world?
TheBDJ @ Jul 7th 2009 7:36AM
Hell, Spike has them beat on Sci-Fi some weeks. After all, they did have the "Force of July" (airing the entire Star Wars movie series over the course of a week). That may qualify for more Sci-Fi then Sci-Fi (or SyFy or whatever they want to call themselves) shows in a month.
FAUguy @ Jul 6th 2009 11:05PM
The only thing I watch now on SciFi, or SyFy, is X-Files reruns at 2am if I'm up. The only show I use to watch was MST3K, after it left Comedy Central, but then it only lasted a few more seasons.
Michael Fan @ Jul 6th 2009 11:10PM
Whats next?wyfy?
Bill @ Jul 6th 2009 11:28PM
Let me guess... The name change was done so the network will better relate to the "Texting" generation which, as we all know, could give a rats ass about spelling and loves to abbreviate everything. Well, that was pretty much Pizza Hut's reason for rebranding to "The Hut".
Dumbass move by SciFi, but like others have said, it's not like they stayed true to being a Sci-Fi channel anyway.
Ricky @ Jul 6th 2009 11:32PM
Miko had it right, they're doing this so they aren't stuck just showing sci-fi shows. Now they can pursue their totally awful television programming to the fullest.
calidan @ Jul 7th 2009 12:18AM
It would be cool if another company created a channel called Sci-Fi and kicked the crap out of SyFy. :-)
av8or @ Jul 7th 2009 1:35AM
if i didn't know syfy was the new scifi channel, and just saw that name in the listings, i'd think it was a channel about syphilis based just on the callsign
Viewtiful Jason2 @ Jul 7th 2009 8:39AM
I dont watch SciFi much with the exception of the occasional Twilight Zone episode.
shaitien @ Jul 7th 2009 9:02AM
I don't watch SciFi as much as I used to. But I think SyFy is a horrible rebrand!
Mike @ Jul 7th 2009 9:13AM
Read about other cable channel rebrands at http://www.tvtango.com/news/detail/id/44
Jason Chapa @ Jul 7th 2009 10:39AM
I don't care what they name it. I'm still going to pronounce it "Sci Fi."
Dan @ Jul 7th 2009 11:01AM
They forgot the common saying like with what happened to Cartoon Network
If it ain't broken! DONT FIX IT!
Evan @ Jul 7th 2009 11:38AM
If I just read "SyFy" without knowing what it is, I might be tempted to pronounce it "Sifee".
kegin @ Jul 8th 2009 10:31AM
I am totally amazed that someone would take a perfectly working machine and "muck if up".
SyFy or "siffy" as it is being named, is about as lame as "New Coke" back in the day.
If the folks at the SciFi Channel have any "testicular fortitude", why don't you have an online
vote, or televised vote for the viewers who want the the original logo with the cool Saturn background as opposed to this stupid, lame, (...sorry, I digressed...) SyFy logo.
If you are attempting to be imaginative and open minded, then you should have no problem
in putting this to a viewer vote
oversight68 @ Jul 7th 2009 4:30PM
They didn't ask the viewers because they don't care what their viewers think or say. They've made that crystal clear over the years. Some slick marketing idiot told the bobble heads that run the network that the change to SyFy would be a good idea so they ran with it.
lee @ Jul 7th 2009 1:55PM
Like it makes any more sense that they show wrestling. How is wrestling science fiction?
Demolition Man @ Jul 7th 2009 2:54PM
Ask Bonnie Hunt that since she was the one who put ECW on SyFy.
stephman @ Jul 7th 2009 3:16PM
Ya! Let's all write in and ask Bonnie Cunt why the $uck ECW is on a Science Fiction channel! And why they keep cancelling ALL the good shows!
What happen to the good ol'days with Farscape, Firefly, Stargate. Heck, I'll even take First Wave back with the ex porn star Traci Lords over ECW!
oversight68 @ Jul 7th 2009 4:31PM
They cancel the good scripted shows cost money to make, while reality shows are comparitively cheap. It also reflects their disdain, lack of understanding and caring about Science Fiction as a genre.
I'll check out SG: Universe this Fall, but aside from that, SciFi has pretty much lost me as a regular viewer.
Mark M @ Jul 7th 2009 4:42PM
Just another prime example of long-running disastrous mismanagement by a bunch of clueless retards, as the channel continues its march into irrelevancy...
mntwister @ Jul 7th 2009 6:30PM
It always means that it is going to be ruined, though the channel is nothing like it wa when it first started, when it was a GREAT channel. Same thing with TV Land, they didn't change the name but now they have reality TV on there too. I suppose they couldn't find enough series from our past to show on TV Land out of some 14,000 TV series with over 1,600,000 episodes (according to tvondvd.com). Sad to see this happening with some of the better channels!
DavidB @ Jul 7th 2009 11:12PM
Changing the name won't make more people magicly want to watch the content the channel has.
So, you either do what TNN did, and completely re-brand your channel space (TNN was The Nashville Network and changed to spike) or your just suck it up and play to your core audience. Otherwise you don't appeal to either and go under.
Not sure why syfy doesn't just go with Genre TV and show horror too.
FarmerBob @ Jul 8th 2009 6:36AM
Your mean Styr Fry TV. Get yours now completely devoid of any intellectual nor entertainment worth.
Now the flood gates are now open for them to show anything they want that has nothing to do with their initial Science Fiction commitment. Your new home for ECW wrestling, stupid geek game shows, fictitious ghost hunting and ridiculous "C" movies, programming from other networks and oldies and moldies that will be claimed as SFOriginals although SF had nothing to do with them.
Gone are the days of smart, entertaining and intriguing SciFi fare. They already canned all that long ago. So what is there now . . . OH wait, imported British SciFi (via their new Pres. import a year or two after it airs there from the BBC, that can be see st run on BBCA - they'll never learn.) that NBC would never pay the money (they proved that by canning SG1) it would take to do their own it right here on the states. Oh well.
FarmerBob @ Jul 8th 2009 7:10PM
Ask the viewers what they want? Are you kidding! They have a new Upper Mucky Muck Wonder Guy imported from Britain (that is heading up the rebranding), where everything that we bring over is just perfect. Yeh, right.
Sounds like a cheesy Asian Soy Product to me. So enjoy StyrFry TV.
The Avatar @ Jul 10th 2009 4:03PM
SciFI or SyFy, it is completely unwatchable with the commercials every 5minutes. I gave up and started downloading series (via Apple TV).
clara @ Jul 10th 2009 9:52PM
Will it still suck, with lowest-common-denominator reality programming, movies mangled by editing, and constant commercial interruption? What about tv show marathons that play sequenced episodes out of order? Hopefully they'll continue these idiotic home-grown movies rather than license the volumes of reasonable science fiction movies/shows out there.
Ugh... I'm so disgusted with this channel that abuses such a popular and profitable genre.
Matthew @ Jul 14th 2009 4:04PM
Believe it or not, the "F grade killer disaster/reptile/insect/horror schlock" movies consistently get two million viewers every Saturday night; those ratings, I assume that they are comparatively good, are one of the reasons that they continue to produce that trash. The other reason? They are so cheap to produce that it is likely difficult not to make a profit on them.
Floringo @ Jul 26th 2009 3:53PM
Something more that their name-change happened. There was a time when at least 60% of my tv-watching was only on The SciFi Channel...now it's ONLY Warehouse 13 and I pick that up on HD-On-Demand...something happened to their programming when Battlestar Galactica ended...it got all sucked up into a black hole I guess and all I'm left with is...well...nothing but tangled string theory. BTW...does Showtime own SyFy?