here! TV is, well, Here!

On Sept. 7, LGBT television viewers in Tampa Bay and Orlando will have the opportunity to add a little more fabulousness into their lives. The premium subscription cable channel here! TV will be available on channel 398 on Bright House Networks.

â┚¬Å”Bright House has a key market that we've been interested in for some time,â┚¬Â says Eric Feldman, here! TV executive vice president and general manager. â┚¬Å”We're already on Verizon, but we've received great feedback from when are executives are in those marketsâ┚¬â€whether its at a film festival or whatnot.â┚¬Â

The network went on the air in August, 2004, and has seen steady growth since then, despite some trying economic times. The expansion into Bright House's mid- and west-Florida locations has been something network executives have wanted for a long time, so they jumped at the chance to secure the spot.

â┚¬Å”When we started the timing for the network was right, and then it was wrongâ┚¬â€now it's right again,â┚¬Â says Josh Rosenzweig, senior VP of original programming and development. â┚¬Å”We made it through a difficult periodâ┚¬â€a difficult period for any premium service. We launched at the right time in 2004 to get our foot in the door and people knew we were there. That helped build a nice strong base of subscribers.â┚¬Â

But when the economy took a down turn, subscribers started cutting the service to save money. But Rosenzweig believes we're coming out of that trend.

â┚¬Å”In 12 months or so we'll see a new day dawning and people will still need to see their stories told,â┚¬Â Rosenzweig says.

And there are plenty of stories available on here! TV for the entire alphabet that is our community.

â┚¬Å”We do have something for everyone and our programs run the gamut,â┚¬Â Feldman says. â┚¬Å”Of course you're never going to please everyone, but we certainly try and I think we've been very successful.â┚¬Â

Both men are hopeful that Bright House subscribers will take the opportunity to view here! TV when it debuts on Sept. 7 in our market. For those unfamiliar with the network, Rosenzweig has a simple way of explaining it:

â┚¬Å”I like to use the analogy that here! TV is to LOGO as Showtime is to MTV,â┚¬Â he says. â┚¬Å”What you can give on a basic cable channel like LOGO is much different than what we can offer on a premium subscription channel. It's more adult stuff like Queer as Folk or Six Feet Under. We can tackle subjects people can't on basic cable. We can show two men in bed together or two women kissing. Our parameters are wider.â┚¬Â

Feldman adds that while here! TV does offer adult content, it doesn't offer pornography.

The popular network offers original programming as well as a library of movies, documentaries and special acquired from other sources. The availability of the network to Floridians utilizing Bright House is convenient, considering a multitude of original programming will debut over the next few months.

â┚¬Å”The most exciting thing for me is the amount of new programming we have coming out through the fall and next year,â┚¬Â says Mark Umbach, director of public relations and corporate communications for here! TV. â┚¬Å”Whether it be Dante's Cove: Book of Tresum our political shows or our cooking show, Food Fetish. The diversity is amazing in the amount of new stuff coming up.â┚¬Â

For Rosensweig, his excitement in the upcoming hear stems from a documentary he's been directly involved in called Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS: A Look Inside. The one hour special, debuting this month, goes inside the program in New York with backstage interview with key players.

When the same question is posed to Feldman, he's more hesitant to name just one program or series that has him excited, since he believes â┚¬Å”all my children are beautiful.â┚¬Â

For Feldman, his excitement stems more from what is happening in the nation as well as on here! TV.

â┚¬Å”We have gay marriage in New York and the tide is changing when it comes to LGBT rights,â┚¬Â he says. â┚¬Å”Our focus is also changing and the network's focus is to be there for our viewers. We respect them and can't wait to share in these exciting times with them.â┚¬Â