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For all of you living on television time, get ready for broadcasting's version of daylight savings.
Beginning Feb. 8, CBS affiliate KPIX-TV (Channel 5) and KRON (Channel 4), the NBC affiliate, will start prime time television at 7 p.m. and end it at 10 p.m. The early-to-bed, early-to-rise, commute-till-you-drop crowd--growing group in the Bay Area--welcomes the change.
But for networks and affiliates, the switch to early prime time amounts to the biggest change in television programming since Monday Night Football, and it could have ramifications for the entire West Coast. Here in the Bay Area, it may reshuffle audience preferences for local news broadcasts, generate lucrative multi-million dollar markets for advertisers and create opportunities--and obstacles--for independent stations. At the same time, it could spell disaster for syndicators who will find their lucrative niche--filling "access" time before prime time schedules with shows like "Wheel of Fortune" and "A Current Affair"--diminshed.
Says Harry Fuller, news director at KPIX: "This marks a major change in the way we do business. People in this market aren't interested in staying up all night and watching TV."
KPIX, the first affiliate to announce that it would switch to early prime time, is timing its move to coincide with coverage of the 1992 Winter Olympic Games. The station also plans to expand its Eyewitness News Nightcast to a full hour at 10 p.m., and is spreading the word with one of its biggest promotion efforts ever: in addition to regular television spots, KPIX has 195 billboards announcing the change throughout the Bay Area.
Fuller says the move was prompted by market research indicating a decided change in Bay Area lifestyle and commute patterns, including:
* The number of homes using television from 7-10 p.m. is significantly higher than the 8-11 p.m. slot, due largely to a precipitous drop in viewing after 10 p.m.
* Two-thirds of all Bay Area adults work outside the home: nearly half are already heading to work by...