SHARE OF VIEWERS, 11-17 DECEMBER 1995
			PRO TV		54%
			TVR1		20%
			TVR2		 8%
			Antena1		 7%
			Tele7 abc	 6%
			others		 5%

he percentages are rounded to the nearest whole. As can be seen, PRO TV has also surpassed the other private channels as well as the state channels.

ow did PRO TV do it? Simply by offering a better programming, with heavy emphasis on first-rate films and live sports--along with some Western-style marketing. Before the channel went on the air, there were posters in most major cities (I noticed them in Cluj and Oradea) with a mysterious image. I don't quite remember all the details--I should have taken a photo, but stupid me, I was looking at architecture and urban landscapes. What I do remember is that the poster had the image of an eye, with red, green, and blue bars inside the pupil and/or near the edge of the poster (any Romanians in Romania reading this, can you help me with the details?). There was little or no text, save for the date, 1 December.

nce the channel began broadcasting, the slogan was unveiled: Watch and Win! (Te Uiti si Castigi!). This slogan appeared on the new posters, along with shiny happy viewers and the PRO TV logo. Pretty impressive, even by U.S. standards. I suppose the closest comparison we have is the FOX network, started in 1986 and now firmly entrenched as the 'fourth' U.S. network, along with ABC, NBC, and CBS.

he slogan reflected one of the major publicity strategies of the channel: a daily trivia contest. Every morning at 7 am, PRO TV broadcasts a question about the previous day's programming, and the first caller to answer the question correctly wins 1,000,000 lei. That's right, folks, a cool million (about $ 333 at the current rate, 3000=$ 1). The question is pretty difficult--it can be about any minor detail of a film, sports event, or news broadcast the previous day--and it takes a dedicated 'couch potato' (cartof de canapea) to answer the question. Needless to say, there are sufficient such 'potatoes' to ensure someone gets the answer.

f course the slogan has a double meaning. By watching PRO TV, the Romanian viewers can see more quality programming than they can find elsewhere. Not to be too harsh on the state channels--after all, for people without cable (like me) they're the only option, aside from the tiny private local stations--but the pickin's can be pretty slim sometimes. I'll just compare the American programs they offer. TVR1 and TVR2 have Baywatch, Santa Barbara, Full House, a weekly TV-movie with (a) Connie Selleca, (b) Melissa Gilbert, or (c) Tatum O'Neal, and if we're lucky, a first-rate film like 'City Slickers' or 'When Harry Met Sally' about once a month. But usually it's something like 'High Spirits' or 'Brewster's Millions.' Remember those? At least there is 'Star Trek: Next Generation' every Sunday evening.

y contrast, PRO TV offers NYPD Blue, the X Files, E.R., MASH, Duckman, live soccer from Italy and Spain, and a veritable feast of films. I.e., Thelma and Louise, Broadcast News, Jungle Fever, Alien, Double Indemnity, The French Lieutenant's Woman. The films are subtitled in Romanian, which means that cable viewers no longer have to contend with movies dubbed in German, Italian or French (most of the cable channels available here are from those three countries). So it should come as no surprise that the viewers have switched.

nfortunately for those of us out in the 'sticks' PRO TV is available only on cable, and not every apartment bloc can get cable. Mine happens to be one of those. But that's a blessing in disguise, since I have a lot of old-fashioned book-cracking to do this winter.

---End of #16---
P.S. Since the major mishap did indeed occur (again with the computer monitor), I'm writing this report three weeks late. I have just personally benefitted from the existence of PRO TV. A colleague of mine at the geography department was kind enough to invite me over to watch the LIVE broadcast of Super Bowl XXX. LIVE in this case meant 1 am to 5 am last night. I'm a bit tired, but definitely happy I was able to watch. Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17. No commercials--they filled the gaps with highlights of the NFL season. Romanian play-by-play and commentary. I could understand a third of it, but probably because 10% of it was American football terminology. ---REALLY the end of #16---