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In its continuing bid to move into high-growth business areas and move away from businesses that are slower growth, NBC Universal has acquired a group of international cable television channels owned by Sparrowhawk Holdings of London.
This is the first deal NBC U has closed since Jeff Zucker, president and chief executive, took the post in February. Zucker has pointed out that media is growing much faster internationally than it is in the U.S., and this deal will help NBC U have greater exposure in the fast-growing markets of Asia and Eastern Europe, among others.
Under the terms of the agreement, NBC Universal will acquire the 18 feeds of the international Hallmark Channels, which air across 152 territories to more than 60 million subscribers in the UK, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Australia, Latin America and Asia.
The deal also includes KidsCo, a three-way partnership with DIC Entertainment and Nelvana, launching in Poland, Hungary, Romania, Turkey and the Ukraine on September 7. This will be the first kids’ channel within NBC Universal’s international television portfolio.
The acquisition by NBC Universal represents a major step forward in its strategic commitment, announced by Zucker in April, to more than double the size of its international cable channels in the next two to three years. Sparrowhawk’s channel brands will be added to NBCU’s extensive portfolio, which includes the Sci-Fi, 13th Street, Studio Universal and Universal Channel brands.
Currently, NBC U brings in less than 20 percent of its revenues from outside the U.S., trailing other media groups like ABC owner Walt Disney and the News Corporation, which owns the Fox Network. Zucker hopes to bring that number to 30 percent by 2010, writes MediaPost.
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