Claiming that it is the most ambitious initiative of its 26-year history, BET Networks is set to launch 16 new series this quarter. They have also for the first time created its own scripted shows.
A lot of this is coming about because Viacom (VIA-B) has increased the marketing budget of the network in a big way. That is releasing it from being dependent on syndication and acquiring of network shows.
What seems to be behind this push is the networks disastrous acquisition of HBO's The Wire, which underperformed and caused the overall network to plunge in 
viewership. BET president, media sales Louis Carr said, “We took a chance on that show and it just didn’t deliver like we thought it would.”
2006 was a good year for the network with prime-time viewers growing by 11 percent to reach 692,000. But this year the prime-time audience has plunged a significant 13 percent, and now stands at about 637,000. They lost the same 13 percent among the 18-49 demo.
It looks like what the network is doing is to not rely on one big show that would be a home run. Rather they look like they're putting up these new series to more find out what will resonate with their viewers and build on that from there. I think that's a much more healthy way of going forward, rather than try to get the one big show that would act like an anchor for the network. There just aren't that many that could make that happen, if ever. How many "American Idols" can be found out there?
This looks like a good plan and strong initiative that gives the network a chance to experiment and build upon what works in these new 16 series about to come out. It also should be motivating for their creatives, and provide some opportunites for advertisers to find which demo and show will work the best for them.
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