DreamWorks Animation Plans TV Network in Asia

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/10/business/media/dreamworks-animation-plans-tv-network-in-asia.html

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LOS ANGELES — Shrek is getting his own overseas cable channel.

DreamWorks Animation said on Tuesday that it would introduce a television network in 19 Asian territories, including South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. The most coveted market, China, is not among them, however, in keeping with the difficulties other American entertainment companies — notably Disney — have had navigating that country’s government controls on media.

HBO Asia, based in Singapore, will manage affiliate sales, marketing and technical services for the DreamWorks Channel, which could be introduced to audiences as soon as June of next year, the studio said. The channel’s programming will include DreamWorks Animation series like “How to Train Your Dragon” and “VeggieTales in the House,” which is aimed at preschool children.

Eric Ellenbogen, a DreamWorks International TV executive, said in a statement that “audiences in the region have always embraced our content.”

“Kung Fu Panda 2,” for instance, took in $41.1 million at the South Korean box office in 2011 — more than any other animated movie that year.

Television has been an expanding focus of DreamWorks Animation, which has been trying to stabilize its financial performance by relying less on big-budget movies, the success of which can vary widely. The studio — recently roiled by two failed mergers — notably has contracts to produce more than 1,100 episodes of original cartoon programming for Netflix.