• by Fern Siegel , April 30, 2009

Hasbro and Discovery Communications have formed an equal partnership for a television network and Web site dedicated to children's and family entertainment. The initiative, scheduled for late 2010, is built around well-known Hasbro brands.

 

Discovery Kids will continue to operate -- until the debut of the to-be-named channel. Discovery Communications will retain the Discovery Kids brand for its global nets and its licensing and merchandising business.

The new network programs will build on popular Hasbro properties, such as Romper Room, Trivial Pursuit, Scrabble, Cranium, My Little Pony, G.I. Joe, Tonka and Transformers, among others. It will also carry Discovery's kids shows, such as "Bindi the Jungle Girl" and "Tutenstein."

Discovery will handle advertising sales and distribution, Hasbro will provide studio-produced programming. The venture is expected to reach approximately 60 million Nielsen households in the U.S. targeting kids 14 and under. Programming includes animation, live-action and game shows. There will also be digital and mobile extensions.

"Hasbro continues to evolve as a company with an unwavering vision of re-imagining the potential of our incredible portfolio of brands well beyond traditional toys and games," said Brian Goldner, Hasbro's president and CEO.

David Zaslav, president/CEO of Discovery Communications, says the venture reinforces "Discovery's strategy to develop strong brands, maximize the potential of our extensive distribution in the U.S. and work with the highest-quality content partners to create long-term value."

Hasbro will purchase a 50% stake in the venture, which will hold assets related to Discovery Kids Network in the U.S. In turn, Discovery Communications will receive $300 million. Each company will have equal representation on a board of directors. The search for a president/general manager is now underway.

As part of the agreement, the joint venture gets a minority interest in the U.S. version of Hasbro.com.

Robert Weissman, managing director of Commercial Alert, a watchdog group, raised doubts about the joint venture. He said in a statement that it sounded like "a scheme to deliver program-length advertisements to children over television and advertisements disguised as interactive games over the Internet."