Though seen as a full competitor to the older ABC, NBC and CBS terrestrial networks in the 21st century, it was just emerging as a significant national broadcaster in 1996. At the time of the broadcast of the film, they had only been programming full seven-day weeks for three years, and were still acquiring stations in the smaller markets of the United States. Nevertheless, their flagship programme, The Simpsons, a growing stable of successful primetime soaps, and their recent acquisition of rights to broadcast professional American football, had begun to threaten the dominance of "The Big Three" when McGann debuted.