Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

I want to start an online televeision channel, where it`s free to viewers but money would be made through offering ad space. What kind of company would it be and how would i go about starting the business plan?

It`d be in the class of "Entertainment Media," and/or "Communications." Since it`s online, you wouldn`t need an FCC license, but you would want to keep an eye on your possible vulnerabilities to slander and libel laws (minor exposure, but something to look at, even so).

I`d guess that you could follow the models for things like XFM and Sirius, even though they`re satellite communications. They`re less regulated, and likely would give you some insights into how to get into the overall communications industry.

Another option would be to go back in history a little bit, when AM radio was languishing. Take a look at what exactly was involved in purchasing a station, staffing it, programming it, and financing it.

I`m not at all a business coach, so these are just off the top of my head in terms of logical places to start. :-)

I`m not too familiar with what`s out there but I know there is a lot of stuff being done in web-based video programming and broadcasting.  You`ll want to do a lot of research into the competition and industry.

Contrary to what Craig suggests, I don`t recommend looking "back in history" to get a sense of how things work.  The internet offers whole new ways of communicating and running a business that are much different than the old models.  What worked then, doesn`t work online.  Just ask the major networks in tv and radio.

Now that you have an idea for your biz, one place to start is The 10 Steps to Open for Business.  It will help guide you through what to do next.

Well, Steve does make the point that what you actually do with an online business is different from how previous systems might have worked. But, the reason you can get a lot of good information from the previous broadcast systems is that you still have to deal with the fundamental concepts of entertainment media.

Past or present, you`re going to have to "fill the airwaves." What will be your content, how will you schedule it, what market will you select, and along what lines will you incorporate your business. How will you handle syndicated programming, royalty fees, and legal events. All those have been done before, and whether you`re dealing with bandwidth or channel frequencies, they`re still the same concepts. 

Ah, but they aren`t the same concepts.  Internet bandwidth and channel frequencies are two COMPLETELY DIFFERENT things.  They deliver content in a very different manner.  And I`m not talking about a computer versus a TV.  I`m talking how these technologies effect the business models.

Sure, you still have to get content and it would be up to the business to do so, but no longer are you responsible for actually creating it or contracting for production.

"Scheduling" is out the door, unless you`re dealing with live events.  Content online is on-demand.

Things like syndication and royalties are being completely re-written and really don`t apply in the traditional sense.

Yes, it is still a business and you still have to target a market, monetize the concepts, do your marketing and so forth.  But the internet has re-written the rules of media business models.  I`ve actually done quite a bit of research and reading on this as it`s something that is important to my startup.

Pixie... If you`re interested in getting in on web-based TV, I suggest doing some reading.  A good place to start is to educate yourself on how others have moved or are moving into this space.  Learn more about YouTube`s story.  Explore the concepts behind upcoming sites like Pulver.tv or Justin.tv.  Look at what the big networks are doing on their sites and learn about the problems they face from the transition to the internet.  Think about what you might do differently as you create your business plan.

:-) Alright, I think we`ve pretty well covered multiple perspectives of "starting an online television station," and "what sort of business would it be.