He conquered news junkies with CNN, and now brash media mogul Ted Turner has a fresh target: women.
Turner is strongly considering launching a female-focused cable network, said a source close to his company, Turner Broadcasting System, part of the Time Warner empire.
The move would pit Turner against the long-established women’s cable channel, Lifetime, now seen in 73 million homes.
Turner also would be butting heads with former Nickelodeon chief Geraldine Laybourne and her partners — talk show queen Oprah Winfrey and famed TV producer Marcy Carsey.
Their upstart company, Oxygen Media, is set next year to forge into the world of family and fashion with a women’s interest channel, as well as an Internet site.
Turner executives declined to comment on the news, which was first reported in Advertising Age.
A spokesman for Lifetime, which is co-owned by Disney and Hearst, said, “Over the years, we’ve had a lot of competitors come our way, and our ratings have only gotten stronger.”
Cable industry analysts said Turner could tap the vast media assets of parent Time Warner, which span movie studios Warner Bros. and New Line, publishing empire Time Inc., Warner Music Group as well as HBO.
Two of the most likely resources for a female channel are celebrity-filled magazines, “People” and “InStyle.”
Turner Broadcasting also is said to be talking to other entertainment companies about developing programing for the new network.
A Turner executive, CNN Productions president Pat Mitchell, already has been tapped to lead the new Turner women’s channel — should the plans go through, a source said.
Turner Broadcasting — whose cable holdings aside from the numerous CNN networks include the wacky, Looney Tunes-filled Cartoon Network and entertainment giants TBS and TNT — isn’t the only cable force chasing women.
A number of channels chasing female viewers have launched the past few years — including celebrity-studded E!, tear-jerking Romance Classics, Home & Garden TV and the Food Network.
Despite its powerful position in the industry, Turner has had a mixed record with recent cable launches. CNNfn and CNN-SI have had trouble gaining distribution.
But that hasn’t stopped the cable TV mogul from moving ahead with plans for another channel intended for viewers in the Southern U.S. That network would be called Turner South.
