World Screen

BURBANK, July 18: The merged UPN/WB network The CW launches on September 20 with a two-hour premiere of the seventh season of Tyra Banks’ reality show America’s Next Top Model. World Wrestling Entertainment’s Friday Night Smackdown makes its CW debut …

PARIS/LONDON, July 18: Dutch cable platform Casema is to be acquired by private equity firms Cinven and Warburg Pincus for 2.1 billion euros in a deal with the Carlyle Group, Providence Equity Partners and GMT Communications Partners. Casema provides cable, …

LOS ANGELES, July 18: A senior management restructure has been announced at Universal Pictures under recently installed chairman Marc Shmuger and co-chairman David Linde, with promotions for Rick Finkelstein, Jimmy Horowitz and Michael Joe. Rick Finkelstein has been promoted to …

ENGLEWOOD, July 18: The share price of satellite-TV operator EchoStar Communications rose to a 17-month high yesterday following speculation that DIRECTV majority shareholder News Corporation is mulling a bid for the company. A merger of DIRECTV and EchoStar’s DISH Network …

LONDON, July 17: Rachel Innes-Lumsden, recently appointed to the new role of creative director of development of the BBC’s Factual & Learning division, has named three new development heads. Alistair Pegg has been appointed as the head of development for …

LONDON, July 17: Cartoon Network U.K. executive Dominic Gardiner has been named as director of programming at Jetix UK. Gardiner will join Jetix in September. His mandate includes programming, acquisitions, scheduling and on-air promotions at Jetix UK, with a strong …

DUBLIN, July 17: Irish production outfit Brown Bag Films has delivered the 52-episode RTE commission I’m an Animal, geared to the 3-to-6 set, with international distribution being handled by Monster Distributes. The preschool animated series of 2-minute episodes has been …

HARRINGTON PARK, July 17: New Jersey-based distributor Janson Media has begun offering the international TV and DVD rights to Kenny Rogers: The Journey. The film provides a look at the successful country artist, who has recorded 61 albums and has …

LONDON, July 17: FremantleMedia’s Fremantle Archive Sales division has relaunched its website, allowing users to browse its entire catalogue online. The site at www.fremantlearchivesales.com allows users to search for footage and stills by program or artist name, including content from …

NEW YORK, July 17: SCI FI has greenlit production on Painkiller Jane, from Vancouver's Insight Film Studios and Kickstart Comics, for launch on the cable network in January followed by a U.S. weekly syndication window next fall. Production on 22 …