Haven't had one of these in a while.
Key quotes: “We spent a lot of time in the ’90s trying to distance the network from science fiction, which is largely why it’s called Sci Fi,” Mr. Brooks said. “It’s somewhat cooler and better than the name ‘Science Fiction.’ But even the name Sci Fi is limiting.”
[...]
“When we tested this new name [SyFy], the thing that we got back from our 18-to-34 techno-savvy crowd, which is quite a lot of our audience, is actually this is how you’d text it,” Mr. Howe said. “It made us feel much cooler, much more cutting-edge, much more hip, which was kind of bang-on what we wanted to achieve communication-wise.”
[...]
“We need an umbrella brand we can attach to new businesses: Sci Fi games, Sci Fi kids. It does no use to attach ‘Sci Fi’ because there’s hundreds of sci-fi Web sites and sci-fi publications. So it’s changing your name without changing your name,” Mr. Howe said.
There are no words in Elvish, Entish, or the tongues of Men for how much of a tool this guy sounds like.
I realized another thing I hate about this: their new slogan is a grammatical assault on the caliber of Apple's "Think Different". They both use adjectives to modify verbs. Apple's should have been "Think Differently" and (ahem) "SyFy's" (it causes me actual, physical pain to type that) should be "Imagine Greatly". As it is, it makes me think of a giant cheese grater.
ReplyDeleteSyFy looks more like the nickname of somebody named Sylvester Fyggle.
ReplyDeleteAre we to understand that the SciFi channel is going to be airing even less science fiction, since they find it so "limiting"? Unlike, say, professional wrestling?
I agree with Mac Breck (in the comments at the linked site): they should just call it the "Skiffy Channel" if they're embarrassed to be identified with science fiction.
ReplyDeleteThis is a moronic marketing move. The science fiction/fantasy genre is very strong right now, whether in movies, TV, or gaming. You'd think they would want to emphasize that connection, rather than obscure it. But these are the same guys who cancel good shows like "Stargate: Atlantis" in favor of their cheesy "original production" monster movies and inane fake "reality" shows like "Scare Tactics" or "Ghost Hunters".
Who is their target audience? Not intelligent adults, clearly.