CNBC faces threat from Fox Business Network

Bob Fernandez of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes Friday about the threat that business news network CNBC faces from Fox Business Network.

Fernandez writes, “CNBC, a highly profitable corner of Comcast’s cable-network empire, which also includes Bravo, USA, and E!, acknowledges the viewer gains at Fox Business and says its Trump-focused strategy has been brilliant. But it also dismisses Fox as no real threat.

“Despite the word business in the Fox network’s name, CNBC says, it doesn’t consider it a real competitor, because of Fox’s steady diet of Obamacare-bashing and political commentary, compared with CNBC’s CEO interviews and market-moving exclusives.

“In its view, Bloomberg TV – which is not rated by Nielsen – is its closest competitor.

“And as for Nielsen ratings, CNBC doesn’t use them. They miss viewers who watch outside their homes – in corporate suites, on trading floors, and at country clubs, hotels, and fitness centers, network officials say. CNBC bases its audience awareness on a survey by the Ipsos research firm showing that 17 million affluent Americans — those with household incomes over $100,000 — watched CNBC over a seven-day period, roughly double Fox’s number.

“CNBC spokesman Brian W. Steel said Wednesday that the network was the ‘number-one source for business news and information across all platforms.’ Globally, CNBC’s ‘business and general-interest money content is far and away the largest, reaching more than 270 million adults per month and growing,’ he added.”

Read more here.