• by David Goetzl , January 17, 2011

Fox Business Network and the Tennis Channel will continue a joint promotional initiative through 2011, involving the four leading pro tennis events.

On weekdays during each tournament, the Tennis Channel will provide a one-minute recap of the previous day's action, the "Court Report," airing during FBN's "Imus in the Morning" program. In turn, each evening, FBN will offer a "Fox Business Network Update" on that day's movement in the stock market, as well as the latest business news, before the Tennis Channel begins its nightly coverage of the particular event.

The arrangement begins this week with the Australian Open and will continue through the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open in late summer.

The partnership debuted last year as each network with mid-level distribution looks for a marketing jump. News Corp.'s FBN, in its fourth year, is in some 50 million homes. It had hoped to mount at least some challenge to CNBC, but distribution is in less than half of U.S. homes.

According to the Tennis Channel's Web site, its distribution is 26 million, but increases to 55 million during its Grand Slam coverage.

Viacom's top two executives, Philippe Dauman and Thomas Dooley, were early investors in the Tennis Channel through a private-equity firm they established in 2006.