ViacomCBS announces new content carriage deals, youth content
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Editor
| 15 April 2020

Despite current events seeming to have put a hold on many production projects and deals for TV firms, ViacomCBS is steaming on with business in the form of new deals in Portugal and new ways of content creation.

In a deal that will its flagship Nickelodeon service and other ViacomCBS brands, available to more than four million people in the region, ViacomCBS Networks International has announced new distribution agreements with operators MEO and Vodafone Portugal to bring Nickelodeon as well as premium SVOD services, to more viewers across their platforms.

As a result of the extended agreements with MEO and Vodafone, customers will be able to watch Nickelodeon content for the first time, including animations, such as SpongeBob SquarePants (pictured), live-action series, like Henry Danger, and iconic Nickelodeon events like the Kids’ Choice Awards.

The newly added Nickelodeon linear channel, which will now be available on all platforms around Portugal, joins the MEO and Vodafone portfolios alongside ViacomCBS channels MTV and VH1, which were already available to customers as part of previous deals. In addition to the extended linear distribution, the agreements include the launch of new SVOD premium services, which will be available in the upcoming months, to satisfy viewers’ non-linear consumption preferences.

“Our agreements with MEO and Vodafone demonstrate ViacomCBS’ strength as a content partner in Portugal. With these new offerings, we are proud to distribute Nickelodeon through all operators in the market and continue these important long-term partnerships,” commented Raffaele Annecchino, president ViacomCBS Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia. “Now more than ever, kids and families are seeking variety and entertainment, and it’s a privilege to support them by delivering the fun and positivity of Nickelodeon in this challenging moment.”

After having been forced to warn investors that it was not going to hit previously stated targets, a situation attrubuted partly to the cancellation of film and TV shoots because of the coronavirus outbreak, ViacomCBS also announced two new series were being produced remotely for its Youth & Entertainment Brands to bring audiences comedic relief during this unprecedented time.

MTV International has now greenlit Lockdown Laughs with Charlotte Crosby (working title) which curates the best quarantine clips from across the globe, and Comedy Central International greenlit a short-form, digital series Comedians in Quarantine featuring 10 comedians exploring life during this new normal. Both series encourage fans to continue to self-isolate as the world stays #AloneTogether.