A&E Networks is replacing Bio Channel with FYI, a lifestyle channel geared to an upscale, younger audience that is active online. According to Wednesday’s announcement, FYI can stand for “For your inspiration, for your imagination or for your innovation, FYI will be a personalized experience for each viewer.”
FYI will launch in Summer 2014. Currently, it’s set to debut in 70 million homes. Outside the U.S., announcements regarding the Bio brand will be handled market by market. And although the Bio channel will be rebranded, it will continue to exist on various platforms throughout the U.S.
Jana Bennett will serve as the president of FYI, in addition to LMN, and will oversee the new network.
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A&E Networks President and CEO Nancy Dubuc calls it “the next phase in our strategy to bolster the A+E Networks portfolio.”
“The transition to FYI is the next phase in our strategy to bolster the A+E Networks portfolio by evolving and maturing our brands to allow for future growth in the rapidly changing media landscape,” Dubuc said in a statement. “FYI will be an upscale network with a younger and more modern sensibility than what we’ve seen on traditional lifestyle networks, in an effort to appeal to an audience that has been underserved on linear but thrives online.”
The company says that FYI is already in development with more than 30 potential series it hopes will “inspire, not instruct, today’s viewers.” It remains to be seen how the company intends to capture these upscale viewers who are active online and would still tune in to a new TV network.
“FYI is defined by the world we live in today – offering viewers a less prescriptive, more adventurous approach to their taste, space, social life and look,” added Bennett. “Gone are the days where consumers are looking for experts to instruct them how to live. Together with our partners and audiences, we are building a new brand that embraces personal creativity and the sharing of the best ideas on air and online.”
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Bio Channel, originally The Biography Channel, was launched in January 1999. It was inspired by the A&E documentary series, “Biography,” and later became the home of the series. In 2007, the Biography Channel’s on-air look and feel was revamped and it was known as the Bio Channel from that point on.