Wow Unlimited Media and Bell announce kids and youth tie-up
TORONTO and VANCOUVER – Wow Unlimited Media and Bell Media announced late Wednesday they have entered into a term sheet where Wow will buy a Category B specialty service from Bell Media in exchange for equity in Wow.
The release didn’t name the channel in question and Wow declined to say which one it will be taking when asked by Cartt.ca, but the only two English language Category B channels Bell 100% owns are Comedy Gold and Investigation Discovery. (Its other cat Bs: ESPN Classic, Animal Planet, Discovery Science, Discovery Velocity, and LeafsTV are all co-owned with other partners)
"This strategic partnership will drive our planned multi-platform rollout of a new paradigm in entertainment for kids and youth across North America,” said Michael Hirsh, chairman and CEO of Wow, in a press release. “In addition, the support and collaborative efforts of Canada's leading media and telecommunication company will provide strong momentum to Wow's global expansion plans.”
"We are very excited about our strategic partnership with Wow and the opportunity to work with them in realizing their strategy of becoming a best in class international producer of kids and youth content," said Randy Lennox, president, Bell Media, in the release. "As part of our partnership, Bell Media will leverage Wow's programming for use across all of our platforms including linear television, CraveTV, and SnackableTV."
The transaction, says the release will be structured as an asset purchase and the companies have agreed that, as consideration for the acquisition of the CRTC broadcasting license relating to the Category B specialty service from Bell Media, Wow will issue 3,433,446 common voting shares in the capital of Wow to Bell Media at a deemed price of $2.00 per share for an aggregate acquisition price of $6,866,892, reads the release.
The agreement also says that after closing, Wow and Bell Media will partner on “the ongoing carriage of a Wow branded channel to replace the current branding of the Category B specialty service on Bell TV and related platforms, transitional services whereby Bell Media will provide various operational, transmission, studio and technology services to Wow, the supply of children's and other programming controlled by Wow for use by Bell Media on CraveTV and Snackable TV, and have agreed to collaborate and to jointly develop and produce content for the development and production of future programming,” adds the press release.
Wow, formerly Rainmaker Entertainment Inc., is a kids and youth animation business focusing on digital platforms and content. Its key assets include digital animation network, Frederator Networks, which consists of an animation production company Frederator Studios, as well as VOD channels on digital platforms; Hispanic animation network, Atomo Network, and Canadian animation production studios, Rainmaker Entertainment.
