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If everyone who visits this page could help with $5 or $15 we could offer The Autism Channel to MILLIONS more around the world (free to viewers).

With more than 27,000 homes currently watching (HOLD ON, THAT IS NOW 28,000!) The Autism Channel the amount of help and guidance the channel is providing is simply awesome. We offer medical experts, therapy experts and even programming for young children on the autism spectrum. After spending all the money we could afford, we now need your help.

That's a conservative estimate of the number of people on this planet with autism. In many third world countries children are born every day with autism, with no one there to diagnose them or offer therapy. The guesstimate is that 1 in every 150 people worldwide have an ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). It is also estimated that it takes up to six people (if you include extended family, respite care and therapists) to offer the kind of care and support that is producing great results. This is a very sizable niche audience.

We are already in more than 27,000 homes worldwide just on Roku alone (HOLD ON, THAT IS NOW 28,000!)with almost no promotion! We are completing the final technical approval process to be added to the Panasonic Viera smart (or connected) TVs and  Blu-ray disc players. We're in development on apps to allow us to reach millions more on other set-top boxes, connected TVs, gaming consoles, tablets and smart phones.

Each time we add a new brand of connected (or smart) TV/disc player we increase our world reach by millions worldwide.

For each $5,000 we can add one more brand of these units. If we make our goal we expect to add over 80,000,000 more potential viewers. And for every $5000 beyond our goal we add yet another (approx) 10 million more. The Autism Channel presents television programming that touches EVERY aspect of autism, such as therapy, early diagnosis, and research. We have special programming designed especially for very young children with autism. Programming for teens and adults.

It all started for us nearly four years ago when we saw Temple Grandin on TED Talks and then the HBO biopic about her. Being in business together for two decades, we were always amazed at our compatibility and rare disagreements. Temple and the subject of autism became an obsession for us, since it resonated so strongly with the way we thought: Ray thinks in pictures; Jerry in a very linear fashion which explained why we always intuitively knew who should do what job. Then, there was one coincidence after another pushing us further and further into the autism community.

We had a great deal of experience in video production so we hatched the idea of producing a one hour show for a basic cable network that we called I Am Autistic. Finding our host was tough, but the goddess of good luck brought us Daniel Heinlein, the perfect “on the spectrum” host.

Next, we built a sound-stage, purchased much more equipment, and took nearly a year to complete an hour-long pilot. The networks would have none of it. “Oh what a depressing subject!” or “there is no audience for it.” (This even though over 16 million Americans were touched by autism.) We got very close to a deal with one network, but when they said they would send us a producer to take over the show it was our turn to say, "Thanks, but no thanks."

Many wonderful people in the autism community helped us create the pilot. It dawned on us (a bit late) that the schedules of the parents of children on the spectrum were wildly unpredictable. Many would say: “Call me after ten tonight”, or “Call me at 5am.”

"Appointment television" was not for this audience; on-demand streaming video was; The Autism Channel is always on, every show is on-demand. Shows are never deleted, and people can re-watch them anytime they like.

One year after production on the pilot began, our channel was approved by the Roku set-top box for inclusion in their channel store, and our viewership just on this one device grew at close to a hundred new homes a day! Now, on Roku alone, we are seen in just over 28,000 homes around the world.

Watching program-length shows on a computer screen is pretty much not done; it tends to be a solo experience. Statistics show that after about ten minutes, people tire of watching a small computer screen image. The other point is that our programming is designed for families to enjoy together, on a large screen in an environment where content discussion can take place. We will ultimately be on personal devices and already have previews of our content on the web. Last week, we made our daily newscast available to our many friends on Facebook.

If we go beyond our goal, we'll have the money to immediately begin application development for some of the smaller personal media devices farther down our development list. We're first concentrating on traditional viewing environments through non-traditional methods (set top boxes, and large-screen connected video devices).

What you see are the nearly ½ million dollars we have personally invested in the channel, and our investment for day-to-day operations continues. Where we need help is with an influx of cash to keep up with the fast-growing number of new devices that are suddenly appearing in the market that play streaming video. To get the channel in the black we need to be on as many brands of streaming video units as possible. We know from our experience on Roku that people will watch us; we need the universe of people who can watch us to increase several hundredfold. There are a total of 34 brands of “smart” or “connected” TVs, Blu-ray disc players, set-top boxes, and gaming consoles.  So in addition to our current two brands, 32 more await us. If we are lucky enough to be able to pay developers an average of $5,000 each (a bargain) that would cost a total of $160,000 dollars. Plus as we grow, our streaming costs increase until advertising can underwrite it.

Millions around the world are "cord cutters”--people who are leaving cable and satellite TV for streaming. An example is Netflix which for $8 a month offers tens of thousands of movie titles, anytime you want to watch them! Streaming also typically means the channels are “on demand.” Unlike "appointment television" you watch what you want when you want. Many people are paying $200 a month and more to see 300 or so channels. With a “smart” or “connected unit hundreds of channels are available free (you only need a DSL or better Internet connection). This is not web-based “Internet TV.” Streaming to connected TVs and set top boxes uses the Internet as no more than a delivery method. Just because you hear the word Internet does not mean you can watch it on a computer. Because of the development of streaming TV by Netflix and Roku we (and hundreds of other channels) are delivered worldwide in beautiful HD. The Autism Channel is offered at no charge to the viewers. For more information click HERE.

NO. In order to sell the advertising that will financially support The Autism Channel we will need nearly 100,000 viewers during peak viewing periods. Streaming video worldwide is something that is not at all inexpensive; currently the two partners are paying all streaming costs for the channel.



For an enterprise like ours, there is very little difference between being a for profit or non-profit. Both pay employees, both serve a segment of the population, both can have paid employees, even highly paid ones. We chose the profit-model because we believe the channel can be self-sustaining through advertising, which can be a legitimate business expense for advertisers. We don't need to be a charity; the autism community is overflowing with non-profits asking people for money. This is why we also elected to be a FREE channel with no subscription fees. While we need to raise money to reach our goal, a part of that goal is to reach an audience size that brings us advertising revenue that then can perpetually support the channel.

After investing nearly ½ million dollars we realized that our ability to grow as fast as the viewers of “streaming TV” worldwide were growing was impossible. Supporting each brand of television, Blu-ray, game console and set-top box costs at least $5000 each, sometimes as much as ten times that amount. That will be the primary use of your contribution; we also hope to raise enough to enlarge our very small staff so we can get our shows on the air much faster. As one of our “angels” you will be on an exclusive list to receive a monthly E newsletter with the current growth data.



Ray spent 28 years in radio and television both as talent and management in Chicago and Los Angeles. After leaving that business he joined Jerry to create Touch-Map® Systems and Flying Pig Ranch Studios. FPR Studios has been producing television for the last 25 years and has received awards for writing, original music, production and community service and more. Jerry spent 15 years in Los Angeles radio as a newsman, producer and program director for an NPR affiliate. He has a journalism degree from USC, and joined Ray in leaving radio for new media, developing telephone applications and early Internet media streaming systems. Our new media company, FPR Studios was involved in the move away from film to non-linear video editing. Our pigsfly.com site, which we provide as a public service, has been a resource for video editors and compositors for 15 years.

Yes. Our five year plan reveals that within 2 years (if we hit or go beyond our goal) we will turn a profit. We have had several investors approach us with the intent of joining our company, but taking investment money means losing control. We have been involved as autism advocates for a number of years, and have seen firsthand the many missteps that others have made in this community. Taking responsibility for and having complete control (we believe) is vital to the channel's success.

Just imagine us gaining the potential to reach over 400 million people on this planet with information, education and even entertainment. That potential would come from us being able to hire software developers to put the channel on just about EVERY television, disc player, set-top box so our reach could help millions.

STILL HAVE QUESTIONS?

Please feel free to send an Email with your questions to GoGo@TheAutismChannel.tv or you my phone us at  855-TVAUTIS(M) (855 882-8847) 24/7 Extension 707

WANT TO HELP, BUT CAN'T CONTRIBUTE?

We understand. The reason we aren't subscription based like most streaming channels is we understand a lot of our audience has too many demands on their resources. You can still use your voice in social media and email to spread our story and this site to other people who may be able to contribute. We are so proud that so many people have come together to support this effort from the very first day we envisioned it. This is not something we could have ever done alone.