Cynopsis: International
3/07/07

Good Morning.  It's Wednesday, March 7, 2007, and this is your first early morning International & Multicultural briefing.

Hispanic kids programming has taken a front seat this month with Univision's $24 million fine just last week. Just happens that we are spotlighting a Hispanic children's programming network this month. Take a peek below at ¡Sorpresa!.

 

INTERNATIONAL MARKET:

 

Viasat Broadcasting and MGM have inked a deal covering MGM's James Bond film library for Viasat's TV3 for broadcast in Sweden and Norway. The 21 movies in the franchise include 2006's Casino Royale, which will debut in 2009 while all the others air beforehand. All these library movies were produced by Eon Productions under MGM.

 

MTV Networks' gamer video site GameTrailers teamed up with MTV Networks International's Game One brand in France. Starting this month, original GameTrailers-produced content will appear on air on Game One, a 24-hour local-language channel about games that is available on France's cable and satellite platforms. It will also be available on its website, www.gameone.net. At launch the site will offer more than 80,000 videos, 20 fresh daily videos and new feature sections. The Game One brand will also be expanded into the U.S. with GameTrailers's launch this week of the new bi-weekly interactive original series GameOne.

 

Faith-based network group Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) signed a deal with Hong Kong-based Asia Broadcast Satellite (ABS) to air TBN's group of networks throughout the Asia Pacific region. The networks included in the deal are TBN Flagship Network, JCTV, The Church Channel, and Smile of a Child TV.

MULTICULTURAL MARKET:

 

Verizon FiOS TV subscribers will have more multi-language offerings to choose from following a deal between Verizon and SIVOO Inc. Verizon will add films in Spanish, Chinese, and Hindi to its lineup this month. This is SIVOO's first distribution agreement with a multi-channel video provider. SIVOO will provide 236 titles in the three languages to Verizon over three years. During March, Verizon will offer eight films each in Spanish and Hindi and three in Chinese, and SIVOO will refresh the selection monthly. Customers can order the films on demand for $3.99 each and play them for 24 hours. SIVOO Inc. is an Internet TV network of multicultural on-demand entertainment programming at www.sivoo.com.

HISPANIC MARKET:

 

The search to recreate Menudo gets underway on March 31 in LA, followed by casting sessions in Dallas, Miami and New York through the end of April.  MTV Tres will chronicle the journey from the first audition to the last with the selection of seven finalists in Road to Menudo, which debuts on May 12 with four half-hour shows. MTV Tr3s will also air a 1-hour special in July, Road to Menudo: The Finals, where the members of the new Menudo will be revealed. The MTV series will continue this fall with the new Menudo band's five final in a 10-episode reality series (title TBD). Reveille is producing the MTV series in association with Road Games and Menudo Entertainment. Once selected, Menudo will be part of the Epic Records family. The partnership between Epic and Menudo kicks off with a first single in July and the group's "debut" album in December 2007. MTV Tres will also produce a 4-part series, Road to Menudo Presents: De La Calle to the Stage, showcasing stories from the Menudo audition cities with more info available online at mtvtr3s.com and myspace.com/mtvtr3s.  Other programming connected to Menudo includes the 30-minute Fans of Menudo and History of Boy Bands, and Life after the Band specials.

 

Insight Communications will launch Si TV on all of its cable systems across Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio.

ABC Radio Networks signed an exclusive agreement with Thalia to produce and syndicate a 120-minute weekly radio program entitled The Conexion Thalia Radio Show. It will debut on March 17. The Conexion Thalia Radio Show will feature the Latina star Thalia in a lifestyle show format.

 

Nickelodeon premiered the new Latino-themed animated series El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera on March 3 with back-to-back episodes during kids primetime from 10-11a. Nickelodeon's premiere of El Tigre earned the best premiere performance ever for a Saturday morning series on the network, besting even the premiere of the now number-one show for kids 2-11 on cable, SpongeBob SquarePants (originally premiered on July 17, 1999).  The premiere of El Tigre at 10 a.m. earned a 6.9/2.3 million K2-11 rating. The 1030a telecast had a 7.0/2.3.

 

EXECUTIVE MOVES:

 

Carsey-Werner Television Distribution named Rolando Figueroa as VP/International Sales, Latin America and the Caribbean. He will manage the region's sales for shows such as That ‘70s Show, The Cosby Show, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Roseanne, and others. Rolando was recently Tribune Media Services' Regional Director/International Sales. He will report to Herb Lazarus, President/International.

 

The Bravo Group named Stacy Pagan as Director/Retail Marketing and Promotions. She will oversee the agency's marketing and promotions unit while working with Bravo's experiential marketing and interactive divisions. Stacy comes to the company from VP/Marketing at IDT Telecom.

 

Cynopsis: International Edition Network in Focus: ¡Sorpresa!

 

Overview: Juniper Content Corporation is a media and entertainment company focused on branded content services in high growth markets across multiple distribution channels. On January 19, 2007, it merged with Firestone Communications, owner and operator of ¡Sorpresa!, a national Hispanic children's television network and digital community. ¡Sorpresa! (www.sorpresatv.com) provides 24-hour Spanish-language programming to the K2-11 year old audience. It includes culturally relevant kids programming from Puerto Rico, Latin America, and the U.S. as well as international animated shows. Firestone Communications also provides third-party customers with satellite uplink services for television network distribution, and production facilities and services for video program production.

 

Target audience: K2-17 with Spanish-language content

 

Programming:

·      El Planeta De Remi (Puerto Rico) - An interactive show teaching kids important life lessons through games and story telling

·      Hello Kitty's Paradise (Japan) - Translated into Spanish, an animated preschool series with the curious kitten character Kitty

·      Sabias Que? (U.S.) - Original mobile content produced by ¡Sorpresa! with educational facts about the world

·      Kappa Maki (Japan) - An animation series with only music following the lives of a sushi roll and his schoolmates

·      Tienda Magíca (Puerto Rico) - A show with magic tricks, physical dexterity, trivia and more

·      Cachuereos (Chile) - An interactive game show with costumed animal characters teaching about friendship, sign language, math, and more

·      Mi Familia es us Dibujo (Teens) - A normal middle class family's topsy turvy life when mom gives birth to a cartoon

·      Nuevos Cachureos (Chile) - A long running Chilean series, part game show, part variety, part circus

·      Las Aventuras de Arcandina (Ecuador) - An educational series with a message about natural resources

·      Chiquititas (Argentina) - A music-filled series about a group of young orphans

·      Verano Eterno (Argentina) - A group of young teenagers struggling to find their identity

 

Programming Collaborations:

·      CNN - Que Pasa? (Tweens) - Co-produced weekend news segment hosted by CNN en Espanol anchor Claudia Palacios tailored to Hispanic K6-12

·      AOL Kids - ¡Sorpresa! content available on website

·      Verizon Wireless V CAST – 1-5 minute clips of six ¡Sorpresa! shows to Verizon Wireless customers with V CAST capable handsets, including El Planeta De Remi, Kitty's Paradise, Sabias Que?, Kappa Maki, Tienda Magica, and Cachuereos shows

·      RNC Corporation - ¡Sorpresa! and RCN Corporation teamed up last year during Hispanic Heritage Month to sponsor a company-wide children's essay-writing contest about the importance of heritage.

 

Distribution: ¡Sorpresa! network is offered on Cablevision, Charter, Comcast, Cox, Time Warner, Verizon and The National Cable TV Cooperative. ¡Sorpresa! is also available through third party mobile and broadband platforms, including Brightcove, Google Video, MSN Latino, AOL Video, Akimbo, V CAST, MobiTV and sorpresatv.com.

 

Advertisers: Kellogg's, Chuckee Cheese, X-box, and others; Sponsors/collaborations include CNN, Verizon Wireless V CAST, RNC Corporation, and more

 

¡Sorpresa! Execs: Stuart B. Rekant, CEO, Firestone Communications; Leonard Firestone, COO, Firestone Communications; new director of marketing and national ad sales hires to be announced in the near future

 

Long-term view: Cynopsis: International Edition Question: "How do you see ¡Sorpresa! evolving over the course of the next 5-10 years?"

 

Stuart B. Rekant, CEO, Firestone Communications: "¡Sorpresa! provides 24 hour Spanish language programming to the highly sought after 2 to 11 years-old demographic. The Hispanic market is the fastest growing segment in the U.S. This rate of growth coupled with the importance of cultural and language traditions in the Hispanic community can only increase the demand for in language and culturally relevant programming. The recent combination of Juniper and Firestone Communications in January implements the company's strategy of owning and operating branded content services in high growth categories. ¡Sorpresa! now has these resources for expanded programming and marketing initiatives, as well as the addition of key personnel to continue to roll-out our multiplatform strategy."

 

Contacts for more information: Contact (817) 222-1234 for Christopher Firestone, EVP/Operations ( ), or Maria Gomez, VP/Affiliate Sales

 

 

Answer to Yesterday's trivia question:  Judge Harry Stone had a statue of what animal in his office? ARMADILLO Kudos to: Miriam Stocker-BET Black Entertainment Television/Southfield, MI; Matthew Willence-ITN Networks/NY; Patrick Erickson-PHD Detroit/MI; Whitney Hand-Turner Broadcasting System, Inc./Atlanta; Brian Nugent-KPIF/Chubbuck, ID

 

Today's Trivia Question: What foreign country did Drew and Mimi visit on the Drew Carey Show? (click here with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: Only the second four correct answers from each time zone will be mentioned; and once you've been mentioned in any of the Cynopsis editions, you can't be mentioned again that calendar week.)

Later -- Ariana
Ariana Rawls for Cynopsis: International Edition
03.07.07

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