• by David Goetzl , April 9, 2008

In what seemed like only a matter of time, Scripps' Great American Country network is launching a reality-competition series to determine a potential Nashville star. The show, "The Next GAC Star," follows similar successes on sister channels Food Network and HGTV.

Launched respectively in 2005 and 2006, "The Next Food Network Star" and "HGTV Design Star" have become tentpoles on the two networks, with winners receiving a starring role in their own show on the channels.

The announcement regarding "GAC Star" and other initiatives came at Scripps Networks' upfront presentation Tuesday. A key message to advertisers noted that the company's five networks retain audiences well during commercial breaks and perform strongly in the new C3 ratings. With that backdrop, the networks are open to working with marketers to customize vignettes and other opportunities that would engage audiences during, or outside of, commercial pods.

"GAC Star" will air on Sundays at 5 p.m. starting June 1, but will take a slightly different tack. Would-be Underwoods and Chesneys will begin submitting videos of themselves performing next month at GACtv.com. Those videos, in turn, will form the basis for the weekly half-hour show.

The performer-generated videos of "GAC Star" will then lead to two higher-profile shows--on Sept. 3 and a live finale Sept. 10. The eventual winner receives the chance to star in a professionally produced music video to air on the network. "Being a music-video-focused network, we thought it was a great fit," said GAC head Ed Hardy.

The series will air as "Nashville Star," which has been on USA since 2003, moves to NBC on June 9 and runs this summer. That series has had "title" sponsors, and GAC is searching for a similar advertiser to top-line "GAC Star."

In 55 million homes, GAC has sought to position itself as a destination for music vis-à-vis larger competitor CMT. CMT has moved aggressively into reality series, some as far afield from the country genre as recent acquisitions, Fox reality series "Trading Spouses" and "Nanny 911."

To bolster its "true Nashville" bona fides, GAC recently revamped its Music Row studio and placed a large sign on top of the building as a marketing tactic.

Tonight, GAC is launching a new series that features country stars joining NASCAR drivers, where the pair is expected to discuss their favorite country videos. Yet the show is also looking to provide a peek inside the popular motor sport. Produced by a NASCAR arm, "Drafting Partners" arguably diverges from GAC's music roots and follows, at least slightly, CMT's shift.

Scripps' five networks are splitting off from parent E.W. Scripps' newspaper and local TV businesses this summer, forming a separate Scripps Networks Interactive company. In 2007, the networks collectively--led by the flagship HGTV and Food Network--saw ad dollars increase 11% to $928 million. (HGTV and Food are in more than 90 million homes; GAC, Fine Living and DIY are all in the 50 million range.)

At HGTV, Scripps said Tuesday that "Design Star" will be returning for a third season June 8. The network is also taking a Web property, "Rate My Space," and turning it into an eponymous TV series. The Web site allows visitors to post photos of their interiors, and the series (starting June 19) will permit a homeowner to select inspirations from the photos for redesigns at their house.

At the presentation Tuesday, HGTV addressed whether the troubled real estate market may affect its viewership, saying that "the housing market may have cooled off, but on HGTV, real estate is red hot." Coming this summer is "The Stagers," where a designer overhauls a for-sale house to raise its value in just a few days.

There's also a series that taps into networks' and advertisers' increasing interest in "green" programming. In "Red Hot and Green," experts will transform a room into an eco-friendly environment. The show appears similar in its conceit to "Greenovate," a series on the Discovery Home Channel that's moving to its successor Planet Green. Similarly, Scripps' sister network Fine Living has an "It's Easy Being Green" special on April 22.

At Food Network, "The Next Food Network Star's" fourth season launches June 1, meaning the talent search series on Food Network, HGTV and GAC will all be running at the same time. Also at Food Network, longtime network personality Alton Brown launches spinoff "Feasting on Waves" this fall, where Brown and crew visit the Caribbean searching for indigenous delights. The six-week series starts Sept. 7.

Also on tap this fall is the "Chef Jeff Project" (a working title) about chef Jeff Henderson, who was once in prison for drug dealing and is now looking to inspire six adults "heading down a similar path" to reverse their course.