Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional broadcast television (via radio waves) in which a television antenna is required. FM radio programming, high-speed Internet, telephony, and similar non-television services may also be provided. The major difference is the change of radio frequency signals used and optical connections to the subscriber property.

Most television sets are cable-ready and have a cable television tuner capable of receiving cable TV already built-in that is delivered as an analog signal. To obtain premium television most televisions require a set top box called a cable converter that processes digital signals. The majority of basic cable channels can be received without a converter or digital television adapter that the cable companies usually charge for, by connecting the copper wire with the F connector to the ''Ant In'' that is located on the back of the television set.

The abbreviation CATV is often used to mean "Cable TV". It originally stood for Community Antenna Television, from cable television's origins in 1948: in areas where Over-the-air reception was limited by distance from transmitters or mountainous terrain, large "community antennas" were constructed, and cable was run from them to individual homes. The origins of cable ''broadcasting'' are even older as radio programming was distributed by cable in some European cities as far back as 1924.

It is most commonplace in North America, Europe, Australia and East Asia, though it is present in many other countries, mainly in South America and the Middle East. Cable TV has had little success in Africa, as it is not cost-effective to lay cables in sparsely populated areas. So-called "wireless cable" or microwave-based systems are used instead.

Cable television deployments

Asia & Australia

Philippines

“NUVUE”, the first cable television system, was set up in Baguio City spearheaded by American expatriate Russel Swartley in 1969. Popularity of CATV started in the 1980s after the Marcos administration. Cable giant SkyCable started in 1992. Cable providers have grown, and these some examples are Global Destiny, Cablelink, and some regional cable providers. In 2007, SkyCable introduced the DigiBox, a cable TV set top box that provides a digital television (Digital television) (DTV)signal for higher video quality and prevents illegal cable TV connections. In 2008, SkyCable also broadcast the 37th Ryder Cup in High-definition television (HDTV). In 2009, SkyCable became the first cable TV service provider in the Philippines to broadcast the UAAP Games in HDTV via the new SkyHD Cable TV service.

Mongolia

There are several cable TV providers in Mongolia. The main three are "SuperVision", "Hiimori" and "Sansar CATV". All three cover approximately 15 national channels and 40 foreign channels, such as CNN, BBC, and NHK. "Sansar" has biggest network in Ulaanbaatar. SuperVision is the first digital cable television in Mongolia and other CATVs are planning to launch digital cable television with CA systems.

Maldives

There are only two cable TV operators in the country. As the population of the Maldives is separated across around 200 inhabited islands, there is a cable TV operator for nearly every island. MediaNet Pvt. Ltd. is the country's largest cable TV operator (providing only analog service, although digital service has been announced. MediaNet is a Male-based cable TV operator that provides cable and Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service (MMDS) service to five islands near Male. MediaNet holds a distribution license for 75 channels and distributes channels to nearly all the operators of the country. In Maldives, cable TV subscribers can get most premium channels available in Asia.

All channels are required to obtain an exhibition license from Department of Information after each channel is classified at National Bureau of Classification (NBC). NBC gives the highest classification for every channel after contents of each channel are examined for a week. Cable TV classification ratings are as follows:

G - General viewing for all ages.

PG - Parental Guidance is required.

12+ - For viewers aged 12 and above.

15+ - For viewers aged 15 and above.

18+ - For viewers aged 18 and above.

18+R - For viewers aged 18 and above.

Channels with an 18+R classification rating contain content that may affect an individual directly or indirectly. Viewer discretion is advised.

Australia

Cable television began in the early 1990s in Australia. Several companies appeared including FOXTEL, Galaxy TV, OPTUS TV, Selectv and Austar offering services to homes across the major states of Australia. Services to Tasmania and the Northern Territory took longer to start, not until the mid 2000's when the digital satellite pay television service had picked up momentum and was beginning to be used for metropolitan installs and not just rural installs. As FOXTEL and Austar subscribers continued to rise, Galaxy TV ended their services, while Selectv has become a Greek dedicated Satellite service. OPTUS TV in 2011 will cease their services.

Latin America

Panamá

Panamanian company Rexa started Cable TV deployment in 1983. Rexa's successor, Cableonda, was dominant throughout the 1990s, but as the customer base expanded, other companies entered the market. Since 2000 several companies compete for the Panamanian market, such as CTV, Cable Onda, Cablevision, Cable and Wireless, and others. Cable Onda is the largest. The penetration of CableTV in Panamá is at 40%.

Dominican Republic

Cable television in the Dominican Republic is provided by a variety of companies. These companies offer both English and Spanish language television, plus a range of channels in other languages, high definition channels, pay-per-view movies and events, sports packages and premium movie channels such as HBO, Playboy TV, Cinecanal, etc. Also, the channels are from not only the Dominican Republic, but also the United States and Europe. In the Dominican Republic television spectrum, there are 46 VHF, UHF, and free-to-air (FTA) channels. The free of charge channels programming consists mainly of locally produced entertainment shows, news, and comedy shows; and foreign sit-coms, soap operas, movies, cartoons, and sports programs.

The main service provider in the Dominican Republic is Telecable from Tricom. Aster is concentrated in Santo Domingo, but is expanding its service throughout the Dominican Republic. There are also new companies using new technologies that are expanding quickly such as Claro TV (IPTV), Wind Telecom (MMDS) and SKY (Satellite TV).

Europe

Ireland

Cable television is the most common system for distributing multi-channel television in Ireland. With more than 40 year of history and extensive networks of both wired and "wireless" cable, Ireland is amongst the most cabled countries in Europe. Forty percent of Irish homes received cable television in September 2006. The figure dropped slightly in the early years of the 21st century due to the increased popularity of satellite reception, notably Sky, but has stabilized recently.

In the Republic of Ireland, UPC Ireland is by far the largest cable and MMDS operator, owning all of the state's MMDS licenses and almost all of the state's cable TV operators. UPC offers analogue and digital cable television services in cities and towns throughout the country (with the exception of Cork, where the network is digital-only). It offers MMDS services in rural areas. In areas previously served by NTL, the network is digital-only, while Chorus areas still have both analogue and digital services. Other than UPC, the only other operator providing analogue and digital cable is Casey Cablevision, which operates in Dungarvan, County Waterford. There also exists a small number of analogue-only cable networks such as the Longford service Crossan Cable.

United Kingdom

When the infant BBC Television service was started in 1932, Rediffusion, which had supplied cable radio services since 1928, started providing "Pipe TV" to its customers who had difficulties tuning into the weak TV broadcast signal.

Suspended during World War II, the BBC service was re-established in June 1946, and had only one transmitter, at Alexandra Palace, which served the London area. From the end of 1949, new transmitters were steadily opened to serve other major conurbations, and then smaller areas of population. The areas on the fringes of the transmitter coverage provided an opportunity for Rediffusion and other commercial companies to expand cable systems to enlarge the viewing audience for the one BBC television channel which then existed. The first was in Gloucester in 1950 and the process gathered pace over the next few years, especially after a second television channel, ITV, was launched in 1955 to compete with BBC. By the late 1970s, two and a half million British homes received their television service via cable.

By law, these cable systems were restricted to the relay of the public broadcast channels, which meant that as the transmitter network became more comprehensive, the incentive to subscribe to cable was reduced and they began to lose customers. In 1982, a radical liberalization of the law on cable was proposed by the Information Technology Advisory Panel, for the sake of promoting a new generation of broadband cable systems leading to the wired society After setting up and receiving the conclusions of the Hunt Inquiry into Cable Expansion and Broadcasting Policy, the Government decided to proceed with liberalization and two pieces of legislation: the Cable and Broadcasting Act and the Telecommunications Act, were enacted in 1984.

The result was that cable systems were permitted to carry as many new television channels as they liked, as well as providing a telephone service and interactive services of many kinds (as since made familiar by the Internet). To maintain the momentum of the perceived commercial interest in this new investment opportunity, in 1983, the Government itself granted eleven interim franchises for new broadband systems each covering a community of up to around 100,000 homes, but the competitive franchising process was otherwise left to the new regulatory body, the Cable Authority, which took on its powers from January 1, 1985.

The franchising process proceeded steadily, but the actual construction of new systems was slow, as doubts about an adequate payback from the substantial investment persisted. By the end of 1990 almost 15 million homes had been included in franchised areas, but only 828,000 of these had been passed by broadband cable and only 149,000 were actually subscribing. Thereafter, however, construction accelerated and take-up steadily improved.

The first new television channels launched for carriage on cable systems (going live in March 1984) were Sky Channel, Screensport, Music Box and TEN - The Movie Channel. Others followed, some were merged or closed down, but the range expanded. A similar flux was seen among the operators of cable systems: franchises were granted to a host of different companies, but a process of consolidation saw the growth of large multiple system operators, until by the early 2000s, virtually the whole industry was in the hands of two companies, NTL and Telewest.

In 2005, it was announced that NTL and Telewest would merge, after a period of co-operation in the preceding few years. This merger was completed on March 3, 2006, with the company being named ntl Incorporated. For the time being, the two brand names and services were marketed separately. However, following NTL's acquisition of Virgin Mobile, the NTL and Telewest services were rebranded ''Virgin Media'' on February 8, 2007, creating a single cable operator covering more than 95% of the UK cable market.

There are a small number of other surviving cable television companies in the UK outside of NTL including WightCable (Isle of Wight) and Smallworld (Ayrshire, Carlisle and Lancashire).

Cable TV faces intense competition from British Sky Broadcasting's Sky satellite television service. Most channels are carried on both platforms. However, cable often lacks "interactive" features (e.g. text services, and extra video-screens), especially on BSkyB owned channels, and the satellite platform lacks services requiring high degrees of two-way communication, such as true video on demand.

However, subscription-funded digital terrestrial television (DTT) proved less of a competitive threat. The first system, ITV Digital, went into liquidation in 2002. Top Up TV later replaced it; however, this service is shrinking as the DVB-T multiplex owners are finding free-to-air broadcasting more profitable.

Another potential source of competition in the future will be TV over broadband internet connections; this is known as Internet Protocol television (IPTV). Some IPTV services are currently available in London, while services operated in Hull ceased in April 2006. As the speed and availability of broadband connections increase, more TV content can be delivered using protocols such as IPTV. However, its impact on the market is yet to be measured, as is consumer attitude toward watching TV programs on personal computer instead of television sets. At the end of 2006, BT (the UK's former state owned monopoly phone company) started offering BT Vision, which combines the digital free-to-air standard Freeview through an aerial, and on-demand IPTV, delivered over a BT Broadband connection through the Vision set-top box (BT have chosen to deploy Microsoft's Mediaroom platform for this.)

North America

Canada

In 1949, Broadcast Relay Service began negotiations for the implementation of what was to be the first large scale cable TV system in North America. The development of the system relied on reaching agreement with Quebec Hydro-Electric Commission to utilise their existing network of power poles supplying power to the Montreal Metro area. Initial discussions began with a meeting with Montreal City Council on June 21, 1949. After many months if negotiation agreement was reached between Hydro Quebec and Rediffusion on February 28, 1950 for an initial 5 year period. The Rediffusion cable system was operational in 1952 and eventually supplied 80,000 homes in Montreal Quebec. Cable television in Canada began in 1952 with community antenna connections in Vancouver and London, Ontario; which city is first is not clear. Initially, the systems brought American stations to viewers in Canada who had no Canadian stations to watch; broadcast television, though begun late in 1952 in Toronto and Montreal, did not reach a majority of cities until 1954.

In time, cable television was widely established to carry available Canadian stations as well as import American stations, which constituted the vast majority of signals on systems (usually only one or two Canadian stations, while some systems had duplicate or even triplicate coverage of American networks). During the 1970s, a growing number of Canadian stations pushed American channels off the systems, forcing several to expand beyond the original 12-channel system configurations. At the same time, the advent of fibre-optic technology enabled companies to extend their systems to nearby towns and villages that by themselves were not viable cable television markets.

United States

Cable television in the United States is a common form of television delivery, generally by subscription. Cable television first became available in the United States in 1948, with subscription services in 1949. Data by SNL Kagan shows that as of 2006 about 58.4% of all American homes subscribe to basic cable television services. Most cable viewers in the US are in the suburbs and tend to be middle class; cable television is less common in low income, inner city, and rural areas.

Cable television franchise fees stems from a community's basic right to charge for use of the property it owns. The cable television franchise fees represent part of the compensation a community receives in exchange for the cable operator's occupation and the right-of-way use of Public property. A franchise fee is not a tax; it is a rental charge.

Fee structure

The industry strongly lobbies against federal "family tier" and "a la carte cable television" bills which would provide consumers the option of purchasing individual channels rather than a broad tier of programming, sometimes consisting of channels which are not desired by various subscriber segments. These anti-consumer issues continue to garner attention from state governments, Congress and U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin Martin.

Other cable-based services

Coaxial cables are capable of bi-directional carriage of signals as well as the transmission of large amounts of data. Cable television signals use only a portion of the bandwidth available over coaxial lines. This leaves plenty of space available for other digital services such as cable internet, cable telephony and wireless services, using both unlicensed and licensed spectrum.

Broadband Internet is achieved over coaxial cable by using cable modems to convert the network data into a type of digital signal that can be transferred over coaxial cable. One problem with some cable systems is the older amplifiers placed along the cable routes are unidirectional thus in order to allow for uploading of data the customer would need to use an analog telephone modem to provide for the upstream connection. This limited the upstream speed to 31.2k and prevented the always-on convenience broadband internet typically provides. Many large cable systems have upgraded or are upgrading their equipment to allow for bi-directional signals, thus allowing for greater upload speed and always-on convenience, though these upgrades are expensive.

In North America, Australia and Europe many cable operators have already introduced cable telephone service, which operates just like existing fixed line operators. This service involves installing a special telephone interface at the customer's premises that converts the analog signals from the customer's in-home wiring into a digital signal, which is then sent on the local loop (replacing the analog last mile, or Plain old telephone service (POTS) to the company's switching center, where it is connected to the Public switched telephone network (PSTN). The biggest obstacle to cable telephone service is the need for nearly 100% reliable service for emergency calls. One of the standards available for digital cable telephony, PacketCable, seems to be the most promising and able to work with the Quality of Service (QOS) demands of traditional analog Plain old telephone service (POTS) service. The biggest advantage to digital cable telephone service is similar to the advantage of digital cable TV, namely that data can be compressed, resulting in much less bandwidth used than a dedicated analog circuit-switched service. Other advantages include better voice quality and integration to a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) network providing cheap or unlimited nationwide and international calling. Note that in many cases, digital cable telephone service is separate from cable modem service being offered by many cable companies and does not rely on Internet Protocol (IP) traffic or the Internet.

Beginning in 2004 in the United States, the traditional cable television providers and traditional telecommunication companies increasingly compete in providing voice, video and data services to residences. The combination of TV, telephone and Internet access is commonly called triple play regardless of whether CATV or telcos offer it.

More recently, several US cable operators have begun offering wireless services to their subscribers. Most notably was the September 2008 launch of Optimum Wi-Fi by Cablevision. This service is made available, at no additional cost, to Optimum Broadband subscribers, and is available at over 14,000 locations across Long Island, NY, parts of NJ and CT. Cablevision has reported a double digit reduction in subscriber churn since launching Optimum Wi-Fi, even as Verizon has rolled out FiOS, a competitive residential broadband service in the Cablevision footprint. Other Tier 1 cable operators, including Comcast, have announced trials of a similar service in sections of the US Northeast.

History and beginnings of Cable TV-originated live programs

During the 1980s, mandated regulations not unlike Public, educational, and government access (PEG) channels created the beginning of the Cable-originated live television program that evolved into what we know today in 2011 where many cable networks provide live cable-only broadcasts of many varieties, cable-only produced television movies, and miniseries. Various live local programs with local interests were rapidly being created all over the United States in most major television markets in the early 1980s. One of the first was with the local ATC broadcasting station in Columbus, Ohio, the company being based in Colorado at the time, where, in 1982, at the age of 16, while still in high school, Richard Sillman was one of if not the youngest Cable TV Director in the US of these live on-air Cable TV programs.

With the development of the internet, by the late 1990s and early 2000, much of that regulation had been replaced where newer industry technologies developed, offering viewers alternate choices for local events and programming leading to what is today, that being Digital Cable, Internet, and Phone being offered to consumers, bundled, by 2010.

See also

AllVid

Broadband

CableCARD

Digital cable

Digital television

DVB-C

North American cable television frequencies

Private Cable Operator

QAM Tuner

Tru2way

Satellite television

References

The history of Rediffusion by Gerald K Clode

External links

Cable TV Guidelines For Children 12 & Under

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name	Ryan Seacrest
birth name	Ryan John Seacrest
birth date	December 24, 1974
birth place	Dunwoody, Georgia, U.S.
occupation	Reality and game show host, television and radio personality
years active	1990–present
website	RyanSeacrest.com }}

Ryan John Seacrest (born December 24, 1974) is an American radio personality, television host, network producer and voice actor. He is the host of ''On Air with Ryan Seacrest'', a nationally syndicated Top 40 radio show that airs on KIIS-FM in Los Angeles and throughout the United States and Canada on Premiere Radio Networks, and the internationally syndicated chart show ''American Top 40'', also syndicated by Premiere Radio Networks. On television, Seacrest hosts E! News and American Idol.

Early life

Seacrest was born on December 24, 1974, in an Atlanta suburb, Dunwoody, Georgia, the son of Constance Marie (née Zullinger), a homemaker, and Gary Lee Seacrest. Connie Seacrest told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, "Instead of playing with G.I. Joes or Cowboys and Indians, [Ryan] would always have a little microphone and do shows in the house." "But people would call my answering machine just to listen to his voice. They thought I had a professional doing it. That's when I thought, This might be bigger than I think it is."

''People'' magazine revealed that "Ryan Seacrest's first time in the spotlight was in the fourth grade. He performed the singing role of ''King Winter'' in a school musical – and he forgot his lines." At age fourteen, he attended and soon became the "Voice of Dunwoody High School", as his school's regular morning public address system announcer. "I wore braces and glasses and was fat and got teased about it," Seacrest said, "but I was always very ambitious." At aged 16, while still attending high school, Seacrest won a hard-to-get internship at WSTR FM, in Atlanta, with Tom Sullivan, who trained him in the many aspects of radio. When the regular DJ called in sick, Sullivan put him on the air for the very first show of his broadcasting career. In a surprise phone call the next day, the station owner told Seacrest that, although he was not a professional, his stint of the night before had not been "too bad" Soon he was given the weekend overnight shift at WSTR. Seacrest continued to work on air at WSTR FM until graduating from Dunwoody High School in 1992.

Seacrest went on to study journalism at the University of Georgia in the fall of 1992. There, he would continue his radio show at a local Athens station. Seacrest left UGA at age 19 and moved to Hollywood to continue his broadcasting career. While there, he attended Santa Monica City College for a short time. By the time he was 20, he had landed a job in Los Angeles at KYSR-FM 98.7's afternoon show, called ''Ryan Seacrest for the Ride Home''. His starting pay was $15 an hour. It became the station's No. 1 show and was nationally syndicated.

Career

In 1993, Seacrest hosted the first season of ESPN's ''Radical Outdoor Challenge'' and in 1994, a kids show called Gladiators 2000 was created as a spinoff television show of American Gladiators. Seacrest appeared as the host of the fictional game show ''Lover's Lane'' on ''Beverly Hills, 90210'' in "The Final Proof".

In the fall of 2000, Seacrest was the host of NBC Saturday Night at the Movies. On Saturdays in the fall of 2000 through the spring of 2001 NBC would dedicate the 8–11 PM EST block to showing a major theatrical film. Seacrest would appear as the host during the commercial breaks. He offered trivia on the film and a chance to win prizes by calling in a specific number. In 2001, he hosted a reality television program, Ultimate Revenge, where elaborate "get even" practical jokes were played on family and friends instigated by their own relatives and friends, The two seasons featured current radio talk show host Karel. It was shown on The New TNN from 2001 to 2003. Additionally in 2000, Seacrest hosted the International Hawaiian Tropic competition held at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas. He was hired for the hosting duties by Hawaiian Tropic founder, Ron Rice, as a result of his voice and radio work in Los Angeles. In 2010, Seacrest appeared in an advertisement for Scope mouthwash.

Radio

In January 2004, Seacrest became the new host of the radio program ''American Top 40'', a syndicated weekly countdown show, created and formerly hosted by Casey Kasem. The show was syndicated by Premiere Radio Networks. In February 2004, Seacrest became host of Los Angeles radio station KIIS's morning show, replacing long-time host Rick Dees. This show, also known as ''On Air With Ryan Seacrest'', remains on the air. Seacrest is the host, executive producer of this syndicated daily show airing on over 150 stations in North America, with affiliates worldwide. Kasem had been one of Seacrest's radio idols when he was growing up, along with Dick Clark. Seacrest asked Clark for some career advice, and Clark told him, "I believe a stake in ownership is important to have," and Seacrest negotiated a piece of the ownership for the televised ''On Air''. Seacrest stated, "So maybe in 20 years it will still be called 'On Air', with someone else hosting the show, but I can still produce it. Because, let's be honest, you don't know how long people are going to let you into their homes." Recently, Kathy Griffin joined the long list of celebrity guests on Seacrest's radio program.

Leading host and producer

In 2002, Seacrest accepted the position as co-host of the hit reality TV series ''American Idol'' with comedian Brian Dunkleman. ''American Idol'' went on to phenomenal success, putting Seacrest in the national spotlight. The following year, when he became the sole host when Dunkleman left the show, Seacrest's on-screen enthusiasm made him an overnight sensation, and the show was seen by some twenty-six million viewers weekly. In 2003, Seacrest hosted the spin-off show, ''American Juniors''. In January 2004, Seacrest launched a daily entertainment/variety/talk syndicated television program, ''On Air with Ryan Seacrest''. Due to low ratings, the show was cancelled nine months later.

In January 2005, Seacrest hosted the "Celebration of Freedom" concert in Washington, DC for President George W. Bush, the Bush family and the United States Military. In August 2005, it was announced that Seacrest would become executive producer and co-host of ''Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest'', and that he would be the producer-host's eventual successor. On December 31, 2005, Seacrest performed much of the show's hosting duties. Dick Clark's role was limited by speech and mobility issues due to his recovery from a stroke. Seacrest also occasionally served as a substitute host on the CNN television program ''Larry King Live'', and co-emceed Larry King's final show with Bill Maher on December 16, 2010.

In January 2006, U.S. cable channel E! announced a three-year, $21 million deal for Seacrest to host and produce various programs, including ''E! News'' and its red carpet awards show coverages (E!'s signature piece of original programming). An Associated Press profile portrayed Seacrest as using both the deal with E! and the ''Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve'' involvement as a springboard towards a long-lasting career in television production and ownership. In April 2006, he won a Daytime Emmy Award for co-hosting the 2005 Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade with Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa. Seacrest had a cameo in the summer 2007 blockbuster film ''Knocked Up'', where he steps out of his usual friendly host role on E! and rants about the stupidity of the interviews he has to conduct, noting that no one has anything to say about an exit strategy in Iraq or dealing with (presumably North) Korea. Seacrest hosted the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards on September 16, 2007. This is also the same year the reality show he produced ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' premiered with mostly negative critical reaction, but favored among viewers. In 2008, it was announced he had proposed two new shows: ''Bromance'', a reality show on MTV featuring Brody Jenner, and an untitled scripted series he is producing with Paris Hilton.

Seacrest was executive producer for a new reality dating show, ''Momma's Boys'', for NBC. According to a casting announcement, the series follows mothers as they work with their sons to find their perfect match. Seacrest was the executive producer of E! reality show ''Denise Richards: It's Complicated'' which premiered on May 26, 2008. The show received numerous negative reviews. Boston Herald rated the show a D. Its critic Mark A. Perigard said of the first episode:"''Denise Richards’ life is one steaming pile of pig poop...Literally''".

In 2007, Seacrest signed a partnership deal with Crest and Scope. The partnership encompasses print and broadcast advertising, and other appearances. Seacrest stated: "Signing on be the spokesperson for Crest and Scope was a perfect way for my work persona to fulfill a philanthropic need. Fresh breath and a white smile are important factors in my confidence whenever I have to step onstage. There are children in many countries who are born with mouth deformities and have no access to simple dental hygiene..." Crest, Scope, and Seacrest are working together to raise awareness for one of Seacrest's favorite charities. Sharing the belief that children everywhere should benefit from having a healthy smile, Crest and Scope agreed to match Seacrest's personal donations to Operation Smile. His Scope commercials have proven to be quite popular and are currently referenced in many entertainment blogs.

In August 2008, ABC picked up the option in Seacrest's contract to extend him as co-host of New Year's Eve through 2010, ringing in 2011, also renaming the program "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve With Ryan Seacrest", to reflect Seacrest's role as co-host. Also in August, Seacrest named his longtime William Morris Agent, Adam Sher, as C.E.O. of Ryan Seacrest Productions and inked an expansive deal with the Comcast Entertainment Group, keeping him on E! Entertainment Television through early 2012. Comcast also gets first-look rights at all Ryan Seacrest Productions products. In July 2009, Seacrest inked a deal with CKX for $45 million, making him the highest paid reality television host to date.

In July 2010, it was announced that Seacrest was teaming up with E! to develop and produce their first dance show. It will feature Lady Gaga's choreographer, Laurie Ann Gibson. When Larry King decided to retire his microphone from his long-running ''Larry King Live'' in 2010, he suggested that Seacrest would be the ideal replacement. However, that job eventually went to Piers Morgan, a judge on ''America's Got Talent''.

Personal life

Since the spring of 2010, Seacrest has been romancing Julianne Hough, a professional dancer, actress and singer best known for ''Dancing with the Stars''.

In October 2009, Chidi Benjamin Uzomah Jr. was arrested while carrying a pocketknife at Seacrest's E! Entertainment Television offices. Uzomah was also in violation of a restraining order for an attack on a Seacrest security guard in August 2009. In November 2009, Uzomah was sentenced to two years in prison. In a declaration, Seacrest stated: "His aggressive and violent efforts to come into physical contact with me are extremely frightening to me. They have jeopardized not only my personal safety, but also the safety and well-being of those around me."

Credits

; ''Radio''

''On Air with Ryan Seacrest'': Host, executive producer of this syndicated daily show airing on over 150 stations in North America alone, with affiliates worldwide

''American Top 40'': Host of this syndicated weekly countdown show

2003 Radio Music Awards: Co-host

102.7 KIIS-FM Los Angeles: Since 2004, Morning Drive Personality with co-host Ellen K.

Former: KYSR and WSTR On-Air Personality.

98.7 FM 1pm to 4pm

; ''Film''

''Knocked Up'' as a parody of Himself

''Get Smart'' as Himself (Host of ''American Top 40'')

''Shrek 4'' as voice of Butterpants's Father

; ''Television''

''Bank of Hollywood'' :Producer (2009–present)

''Channel 1 News: News Anchor/Reporter. Co-anchor Maria Menounos

''CNET Central'': Co-Host

''Super Bowl XLII'' (2008) Host for pregame and halftime shows

''Gladiators 2000'': Co-Host

''Wild Animal Games'': Host

''The New Edge'': Host

''Ultimate Revenge'': Host

''Fear Factor'': Contestant

''Reality Check'': Jack Craft

''The NBC Saturday Night Movie'': Host

''American Idol'': Co-Host (season 1); Host (season 2–present)

''American Juniors'': Host

''Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest'': Co-host, executive producer

''Hey Arnold!'': Fighting Families Host

''E! News'': co-host

''Larry King Live'': Guest host, substitute host

''Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade'': (2005–Present) Host

''America's Party: Live from Las Vegas'': Host

''Good Day Live'': Guest host

''Disneyland 2000: 45 Years of Magic'': Host

''Robot Chicken'': (2005) Himself

''Click'': Host

''59th Primetime Emmy Awards'': Host

''Mind of Mencia'': (2005) Himself

''Blind Date'': Himself

''Punk'd'': Himself

''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'': Executive Producer

''Denise Richards: It's Complicated'': Executive Producer

"2009 Academy Awards" Host on E!

''Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution'': Executive Producer

References

External links

Larry King Live interview

Time Out New York interview

DigitalReview.net Biography and reviews of Ryan Seacrest

Listen to Ryan Seacrest on American Top 40 online – A partial list of radio stations carrying American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest, with scheduled broadcast times and streaming links.

The New York Times – The Invisible Man

Category:1974 births Category:Living people Category:People from Atlanta, Georgia Category:People from Dunwoody, Georgia Category:American game show hosts Category:American infotainers Category:American talk radio hosts Category:American television producers Category:American voice actors Category:Radio personalities from Atlanta, Georgia Category:Daytime Emmy Award winners Category:Idol series hosts Category:Participants in American reality television series

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