MGM links with Weigel Broadcasting for digital subchannel offering

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, impressed with what Chicago-based Weigel Broadcasting has done in packaging vintage TV shows under the Me TV and Me Too brands, announced Monday it is partnering with the parent of Chicago-area TV stations WWME-Ch. 23, WMEU-Ch. 48 and WCIU-Ch. 26 on a national offering called This TV Network. A round-the-clock programming service stocked with movies and old shows from MGM's library as well as children's fare from Cookie Jar Entertainment, This TV will be made available for stations to air on their digital subchannels, beginning this fall. MGM describes it as "a turn-key solution for generating revenue for the digital spectrum." Weigel Executive Vice President Neal Sabin, who developed Me TV, Me Too and The U brands locally, will oversee the programming for This TV from Chicago. Ad sales will be managed from MGM's New York office. This TV plans to leverage the MGM library of more than 4,100 films and 10,000 hours of TV programming, as well as that of Cookie Jar Entertainment, home to children's properties such as "Johnny Test," "The Doodlebops" and "Caillou."