FremantleMedia Sells Baywatch to Telemundo Affiliate in Los Angeles

LONDON/LOS ANGELES,
September 14: FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) has sold the classic ‘90s series
Baywatch to the Los Angeles
Telemundo affiliate KWHY-TV, who will air the first Spanish-language version of
the program broadcast in the U.S., starting from today.

Prior to the KWHY-TV
broadcast, Spanish versions of the show were made available on three separate Baywatch DVD collections distributed in the U.S. Syndicated
in 1991, Baywatch is currently
licensed into 164 countries.
During its 13-year run, Baywatch
came to represent the epitome of the Californian lifestyle of health, beauty
and stunning beaches populated with tanned and toned lifeguards.

The announcement of this
sale comes on the heels of FME’s recent launch of a Baywatch merchandising program within the U.S. The program,
currently concentrated in apparel, swimwear and calendars, will hit retail this
fall at both mass and specialty boutiques.

David Ellender, the CEO of
FME, commented: “Baywatch is
one of the most successfully syndicated programs across the globe and has
performed exceptionally well in Latin America. It only makes sense for this
transition into the Spanish-speaking U.S. to take hold and we expect this sale
to be a portent of more positive penetration to come.”