Yea but there are other channels like that too. AMC is really just getting started being an original programmer. Give it some time. Hell it took HBO a while to do the original programming thing too. All I know is having Walking Dead, Mad Men, Breaking Bad and so on is so worth what I pay Dish. Yes I know some of those shows are going away.
Now wait a minute here. Lets enumerate the reasons why the HBO comparison to AMC is totally off the mark:
1) HBO's mission was NEVER to have original programming. It started doing original programming to set it apart from the other movie channels, but it never relied on that to be the sole draw for subscribers. Original programming is, to this day, not the sole draw to HBO.
2) HBO is an a la carte suite of channels. You only get them if you pay for HBO. If AMC and its barely watched additional channels were to do the same thing I would have no problem with them upping their carriage fees because I wouldn't be forced to pay for them!
3) HBO viewership dwarfs AMC's audience in all but 16-23 hours a YEAR.
4) In the 5th year of HBO producing original scripted TV (Fraggle Rock was the first in 1983, I think) it had produced 12 other original series from game shows to documentary series to comedy to drama to horror. It was not a one-trick pony. AMC has had 19 original series and mini series since 1989. In the first 24 years HBO has been doing original scripted programs it had 73 original series and miniseries, and a 90 total to date with 4 new series coming this year and 16 more original shows in development. And this is STILL not the only draw to HBO. This is not counting the boxing series and for a while they were the only place to watch Wimbledon.
So lets not compare HBO and AMC.
I watch TNT for Southland. I don't ever watch except for that one hour.
You are in the minority here. The difference is that TNT has, on average, an ORDER OF MAGNITUDE more people watching it than AMC does if you remove Walking Dead from the line-up. If you bring TWD viewership numbers back in the mix, TNT STILL has double the audience of AMC for an average week (Feb11 2013 Nielsen Ratings). IOW, TNT has a more rounded and appealing line-up to more people than AMC does. Not my opinion because I don't watch TNT either. It's just the numbers.
Look, I get it. You like the one show AMC has to call its own. I am NOT saying its a bad show. I am not saying it's not worth it to some to pay for it. I am saying that having an entire channel for one show and forcing everyone who subscribes to any cable or satellite service pay for it is just wrong. Same goes for channels about sports I don't care about, and even those I do care about. I am paying nearly $165/mo for a ton of channels I don't watch now. I watch a total of about 45 of them and of those most belong to a la carte suites already. So when I hear anyone telling me that a la carte wont work because the prices will skyrocket and choice will be deminished all I can think of is "bullpuckey!"