SCI FI Channel Changing its Name to SyfY March 16, 2009 2:39 pm
Posted by Rosario T. Calabria in News, SCI FI Channel, Syfy, Television.add a comment
NBC Universal has announced that beginning this summer, the SCI FI Channel is changing its name to Syfy. The switch will happen, on-air and online, beginning July 7th. The network will also get a new tagline: Imagine Greater. Now it may seem odd to change your network name to a name that is so similar to its original, but there is reason to it, explains Dave Howe, President of SCI FI:
“While continuing to embrace our legacy and our core audience, we needed to cultivate a distinct point of view with a name that we could own that invites more people in and reflects our broader range of programming,” said Dave Howe, who made announcement. “Syfy allows us to build on our 16 year heritage of success with a new brand built on the power that fuels our genre: the Imagination. Syfy ushers in a new era of unlimited imagination, exceptional experiences and greater entertainment that paves the way for us to truly become a global lifestyle brand.”
Also, the new name, while phonetically identical to the original, allows the network to have a brand name all to its own.
“We couldn’t own SciFi; it’s a genre,” said Bonnie Hammer, the president of NBC Universal Cable Entertainment and Universal Cable Productions. “But we can own Syfy.”
I’ve included the full press release, plus a high res version of the logo above, after the jump. (more…)
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