• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, November 7, 2006

Despite MyNetworkTV's lackluster ratings over its first two months, executives at one of its most important affiliates are pleased with the results.

"We are very happy with the MyNetwork affiliation," says Vincent Young, chairman of Young Broadcasting, which operates San Francisco's KRON. Although the formerly independent station's ratings are lower as part of MNTV, "profitability is up dramatically," since the network can charge higher CPMs for prime-time original programming.

KRON believes that MNTV-operator Fox will continue to invest in the 2-month-old network, and won't be afraid to abandon its telenovela programming if necessary. "We know Fox has a willingness to try new formats and new ideas to find a winner," he says.

MNTV executives say they are committed to telenovelas, but when announcing the network's formation in February, suggested they might try game shows or other genres. For its target 18-to-49 demo in "live" national ratings, the telenovelas "Desire" and "Fashion House" are averaging a paltry .3 and .4, respectively.

Last week, a top executive at a large MNTV affiliate group expressed some pessimism about the network, after revenue at its stations were down 6.2% in September, compared to a year ago.

"We expect the MyNetworkTV stations to continue to trail our expectations, as ad buyers become comfortable with the new network's program genre," said David Amy, Sinclair's CFO, in a statement.

But Young, speaking on a conference call with analysts to announced third-quarter results, said that even one moderate MNTV hit would go a long way. "If we have one or two shows that become winners, even in a small sense of the word, not in a "Grey's Anatomy" type of [level] ... that will dramatically change the KRON profile of profitability for the positive."

KRON does have the advantage of a strong brand in the San Francisco market, built over 50 years. Young Broadcasting's third-quarter net revenues grew 13% over a year ago to $53.6 million, propelled by a healthy political ad market.