Deal reps the latest move by Discovery under topper David Zaslav to make over its cable nets. Discovery previously formed a 50/50 venture with Oprah Winfrey to turn the Discovery Health Network into the new OWN channel; it also relaunched Discovery Home as Planet Green.
Discovery Kids is the latest prong in Hasbro’s Hollywood strategy. Hasbro — repped by William Morris Agency, which initiated the Discovery deal — earlier pacted with Universal, which has turned its properties into movies such as “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” and “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” is developing a movie based on the board game Candy Land. It also entered the digital gaming space via a partnership with Electronic Arts.
“As we looked at the options available in TV, Discovery has beachfront real estate,” Goldner said. “We were looking for a partner who understood the cable space, and they were looking for a partner to figure out how to position the network going forward.”
Initial projects Hasbro is targeting for the channel include shows based on “Romper Room,” Tonka, G.I. Joe, Transformers and “My Little Pony.”
Current Discovery Kids fare, such as “Bindi the Jungle Girl,” “Hi-5” and “Flight 29 Down,” will continue to be included, and the channel will also pick up shows produced by outside parties.
The channel, geared toward kids under 14, will also air educational/ informational content.
Hasbro said it is looking at developing programming based on games such as Scrabble, Cranium and Trivial Pursuit.
“The combined assets of both partners provide a compelling platform for building a trusted children’s destination,” Zaslav said.
As part of the deal, the joint venture will also take a minority interest in Hasbro.com.
The channel will continue to be run as Discovery Kids for now. Discovery will continue to hold rights to the Discovery Kids name for its international networks, as well as licensing and merchandising.
Thursday’s announcement didn’t sit well with at least one special interest group. The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood sent out a release soon afterward, calling the partnership “a new low in children’s television, a network devoted to showing infomercials for Hasbro’s toys and games.”
In response, Goldner said it was “presumptuous and inaccurate to come to any conclusions at this point.”
“We just made the announcement,” he said. “A network is not going to be successful if it’s overly commercialized.”
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