Unlike the standard network advertising split, where the stations got the bulk of the ad time with the collective network only receiving one or two minutes of the dozen minutes available to sell, the OPT ad time would be sold at 1/3 of network rates or about $40,000 per half minute with the profits going back to the stations.[7]
With the development of thePrime Time Access Rule and theFinancial Interest and Syndication Rules in the 1970's, network level quality programming was now available for independent stations to advertisers through syndication. Producers of TV programs were also looking for an alternative to the standard network set up that paid the producers about three fourths of the production costs thus the show would only make money for the production company if it made enough episodes to place into rerun syndication. Advertisers were looking for new advertising outlets due to rising network ad costs with a 30% increase in 1977. Networks' income increased 143% from 1969 to 1974 while network payments to affiliates decreased by 2%.[7]
Al Masini, who represented 18 stations for advertising sales through his company TeleRep, discussed the independent stations' problem with other independent stations after a broadcast media meeting in February 1976.[7] Determined to offer an alternative, Masini rounded up a steering committee to form the new venture. Initial members of the committee included Shelly Cooper, General Manager ofWGN-TV[9]Chicago, Rich Frank ofKCOP-TVLos Angeles,[7] and representatives ofKTVU,WPIX andKSTW.[8] At the next broadcaster convention, the committee met to develop the details. The OPT committee then contactedFrank Price ofUniversal Television[10] for the first program. Price offeredTaylor Caldwell's novelTestimony of Two Men as a miniseries with Universal taking on a fifth of the production cost.[7] The committee was initially able to get 22 independent and 53 network-affiliated stations to sign on to OPT.[8]
Advertisers likeGeneral Foods andBristol-Myers abandoned the rival potential fourth network,Metromedia's MetroNet, for OPT, based on Metromedia's near Big 3 network cost per thousand viewers advertising cost and OPT reaching 80% of the country. Masini eventually lined up 93 stations, 73 of which were affiliates of ABC, NBC or CBS; of those affiliated with a network, these affiliates had to preempt part of their regular network prime time programming to make room for specials from OPT. KCOP's broadcast ofTestimony of Two Men's first installment got a 16 rating and the second installment got an 18, well over their standard 4 rating, but in May, a traditional rerun period for the networks.[7]
Prime Time planned three book adaptions for their shows to air in May, July and November or December 1978 with two of them beingJohn Jakes'sThe Bastard andThe Rebels[11] leading the way for the rest of thebook series that OPT optioned including two then currently being written. Martin Gosch's and Richard Hammer'sThe Last Testimony ofLucky Luciano was the third adaptation scheduled for 1978.[12]
The most successful miniseries from OPT was "A Woman Called Golda" It won multiple Emmy awards and was nominated for two Golden Globes.
The last time the Operation Prime Time name was used was at the end of 1986, when theFox Broadcasting Company was barely on the air. At that point, it was justThe Late Show Starring Joan Rivers; they didn't launchprime time programming untilthe spring of 1987. Ultimately, the arrival of Fox as well as original programming forcable networks and stations would eventually make the OPT business model obsolete.
Media related toOperation Prime Time at Wikimedia Commons