4Kids Entertainment Programming The CW’s Saturday Morning

Five-Year Agreement to Kick Off with 2008-09 Season

By Alex Weprin -- Broadcasting & Cable, 10/3/2007 2:57:00 PM

4Kids Entertainment, a distributor of children’s programming, signed a five-year pact with The CW to program the network’s Saturday-morning lineup, beginning with the 2008-09 season.

Under the terms of the deal, 4Kids will provide five hours of kids’ programming per week for the block, set to air from 7 a.m.-noon. 4Kids will also sell the national ad spots featured in the kids’ block. National ad revenue will be split between The CW and 4Kids.

“We are delighted to be in business with The CW and secure distribution of 4Kids’content for the next five broadcast seasons,” 4Kids chairman and CEO Alfred R. Kahn said in a statement. “We have had tremendous success over the years collaborating with CW network partner Warner Bros., to whom we licensed 4Kids’ hit TV series and movies such as Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh!. We think The CW’s outstanding affiliate lineup and young target demographic make the network a perfect fit for our programming and business initiatives.”

4Kids also programs the Saturday-morning children’s block on Fox, and it recently extended its contract with that network through the 2008-09 season.

“This is a great transaction for both The CW and 4Kids Entertainment. It is especially gratifying to work again with 4Kids, a recognized leader in children’s programming, with whom we have shared so much past success,” The CW chief operating officer John Maatta said in a statement. “The agreement with 4Kids, with its substantial resources and laser focus in this arena, will position The CW to continue as a leading supplier of kids’ programming on broadcast television.”