Telemundo deal: Nick in Spanish
SPE, Liberty pact with cabler for 'Rugrats,' others
For years, Telemundo has been a distant second to Univision in the two-way Spanish-language network competition in the U.S., but this deal with Nickelodeon is representative of Telemundo's new aggressiveness under new owners Sony Pictures Entertainment and Liberty Media.
The deal marks the first time that Nick has allowed its shows to be televised in the U.S. in Spanish. The daily two-hour block will premiere Nov. 9 on Telemundo.
Monsters coming
The block will consist of: "AAAHH!!! Real Monsters" at 6:30 a.m. (ET/PT) from Monday to Friday; "Rocko's Modern Life" at 7 a.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday; "Hey Arnold!" at 7 a.m. on Tuesday and Thursday; "Rugrats" at 7:30 a.m. Monday through Friday; and "Blues Clues" at 8 a.m. Monday through Friday.
Nely Galan, president of entertainment for Telemundo, said that Hispanic kids have been underserved by Spanish-language television and her network's deal with Nick was a step to address this void.
The U.S. Hispanic population is 30.5 million (11% of the total population) and is expected to grow to 42 million (another 15%) by 2010, according to outside research provided by Nick and Telemundo.
