The USA Network is a popular cable TV network based in the United States with about 87 million household subscribers as of 2003. The network shows a variety of original and second-run programming, from syndicated TV series to movies. USA also shows some sports coverage, such as select golf and tennis tournaments. In the past, it had a weekly boxing show named USA Tuesday Night Fights. The show ran for approximately eight years.
1980: The channel chenged its name to USA Network after the ownership structure was reorganized under a joint operating agreement by the UA-Columbia Cablevision cable system (now known as Cablevision Systems Corporation) and MCA Inc. (currently a part of Vivendi Universal).
1981: Time Inc. (now Time Warner) and Paramount Pictures Corp. (now a part of Viacom) took minority ownership stakes in the USA.
1987: Ownership consolidates under Paramount and MCA, each with 50 percent ownership.
1997: Seagram buys out Viacom's interest and gains complete ownerhsip of USA and Sci Fi and sells both channels to Barry Diller's Home Shopping Network, which renames itself USA Networks, Inc.
1999: From bankrupt Polygram, USA Buys October Films and Gramercy Pictures, renaming them USA Films, and PolyGram Video, renaming it USA Home Video.
2000: USA Networks buys Canada's North American Television, Inc., owner of cable TV channels Trio and News World International.
2001: USA Networks sells its non-shopping TV and film assets (including the USA Network, the Sci Fi Channel, the Trio Channel, USA Films and Studios USA) to Vivendi Universal. USA and the other channels are folded into Vivendi's Univeral Television Group.
2003 General Electric's NBC agrees to buy Universal Television Group as part of an entertainment asset purchase from Vivendi.
