VIACOM INTERNATIONAL MEDIA NETWORKS LAUNCHES COMEDY CENTRAL ASIA ON NOVEMBER 1 IN SEVEN TERRITORIES
SINGAPORE, PHILIPPINES, CAMBODIA ARE FIRST COUNTRIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA TO GET ALL-COMEDY CHANNEL
SINGAPORE, 25 OCTOBER 2012 – Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN) is set to launch the first 24-hr all-comedy channel, Comedy Central Asia on Thursday, November 1 at 12pm (SG/PH) in seven territories with nine providers – Singapore, the Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Mongolia. The eighth territory, Thailand, will begin transmission of Comedy Central Asia on December 1 via IPTV operator TOT IPTV.
Comedy Central Asia will kick off with one feed on November 1 reaching subscribers of Singapore’s StarHub, the Philippines’s SkyTel, Cambodia’s PPCTV Co., LTD and One TV, Myanmar’s SkyNet DTH, Papua New Guinea’s Channel 8 and HiTRON, Samoa’s Bluesky Moana TV and Mongolia’s SkyMedia. Singapore’s MediaCorp will launch the channel in the first quarter of 2013 via its Over-The-Top (OTT) interactive service, Toggle. Comedy Central Asia will air 24 hours a day, seven days a week in both standard-definition (SD) and high-definition (HD). Viewing platforms include cable, IPTV, OTT, MMDS, DVBT, DTH, as well as online and mobile simulcast.
Comedy Central Asia’s programming line-up will feature Primetime Emmy® award-winning political talk show The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Peabody® prize-winner South Park and Charlie Sheen’s latest comedy hit Anger Management, which is exclusive to Comedy Central Asia.
The Channel will debut with Comedy Central Roast of David Hasselhoff, part of the Emmy-nominated COMEDY CENTRAL Roast series where a special roastee is hand-picked to sit on the hot seat and take it on the chin for the evening with good-natured ribbing from colleagues and comics. This is followed by the sitcom Happily Divorced and the first run of stand-up special Jo Koy: Lights Out. Localized programming during the weekend includes a two-episode marathon of The Noose, a top-rated, Singapore-produced news spoof comedy.
Classic titles Just for Laughs and Mind Your Language, original sketch-comedy Key & Peele, sitcoms Workaholics and The Sarah Silverman Program, gag show Boiling Points and the celebrity special Comedy Central Roast of Roseanne will also be aired on the Channel.
“Launching the Channel in seven markets at one shot is an amazing feat and is proof of the confidence that operators have in the Channel. With less than a week to go, we are eagerly awaiting the launch of Comedy Central Asia. Viewers will laugh out loud with our hilarious programmes from the U.S., the U.K. and Asia,” said VIMN’s Executive Vice President/Managing Director Asia, Indra Suharjono.
Comedy Central Asia will be the platform to showcase Asian comedy and comedic talent. In addition to subtitling, localisation initiatives in the pipeline include local productions, commissions and more acquisitions.
Comedy Central is VIMN’s third global brand (after MTV and Nickelodeon) and expands VIMN’s current offerings in Asia by moving into the adult-skewed entertainment sphere, targeting viewers aged 18 to 34 years old with comedy content round-the-clock.
Comedy Central is the only 100% global comedy network, currently seen in more than 200 million homes in over 70 countries around the world. Comedy Central Asia joins the portfolio of comedy channels for Viacom International Media Networks, which are seen in various markets such as Latin America, Russia, the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Germany, Sweden, Holland, New Zealand, Hungary, Poland, Israel, and Austria.
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About Viacom International Media Networks
Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN), a unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), is comprised of many of the world’s most popular multimedia entertainment brands, including MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, BET, Paramount Channel, VH1, VIVA, COLORS, Game One and Tr3s: MTV, Música y Más. Viacom brands are seen globally in more than 600 million households in 170 territories and 37 languages via more than 200 locally programmed and operated TV channels and more than 550 digital media and mobile TV properties. For more information about Viacom and its businesses, visit www.viacom.com. Keep up with Viacom news by following Viacom’s blog at blog.viacom.com and Twitter feed at www.twitter.com/Viacom.
About Comedy Central
Comedy Central, the world’s biggest comedy network, has been making audiences laugh since it first launched in the United States in 1991. Renowned for exclusively featuring a stable of exclusive and tailor-made local and international comedy, the brand has become the ultimate destination for all kinds of humor, from traditional to satire to sketches to popular sitcoms. Outside of the United States, Comedy Central is part of Viacom International Media Networks (VIMN), a division of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. For information about Comedy Central in Asia, visit www.comedycentralasia.com.
Media Contact:
Viacom International Media Networks
Omar Gepiga, Senior Director
t: (65) 6420 7184 m: (65) 8198 0230
e: omar.gepiga@vimn.com