Joe Tedesco on DHX Television’s Content Strategy

TORONTO: Joe Tedesco, senior VP and general manager of DHX Television, tells TV Kids about how he is programming the company’s Canadian networks.

Family Channel used to be the Canadian home of Disney’s series. In 2015, it was announced that Corus Entertainment (which operates Cartoon Network Canada and has a content licensing deal with Nickelodeon) had acquired the Canadian rights to Disney content from the start of 2016. DHX Media had acquired Family Channel and two local-version Disney channels (Disney XD and Disney Junior) in 2014 for approximately C$170 million ($125 million). Disney doing a deal with Corus meant a major revamp for DHX Television, the division created to run the acquired Family channels business.

“Until the content deal with Disney ended, we aired a lot of their shows on Family Channel,” says Tedesco. “So it meant a rethink. But we weren’t too concerned because our channel brand is so trusted. In fact, it was an opportunity to replace the Disney content, which was quite expensive, with original shows.”

In another context, replacing Disney titles might have seemed like a daunting challenge. But Tedesco, who has worked with Family Channel since 2001, says DHX had two advantages. The first is that DHX Television is part of a prolific production and rights-owning entity, which means its channels have access to a pipeline of in-house content. The second, he adds, is that Canada has a strong community of indie producers to call on.

In terms of concrete actions, the flagship channel, which targets 8- to 14-year-olds, slightly girl-skewing, is now focusing “more on live-action drama series as opposed to animation,” says Tedesco. “However we also launched a teen block called F2N, which offers a mix of live action and animation after 9 p.m. It’s anchored by Degrassi: Next Class, for example, but also schedules quality animation that we have acquired from third parties.”

As for the two Disney-branded channels, “we changed them to Family CHRGD, an action-adventure channel for 6- to 12-year-olds with a strong emphasis on animation, and Family Jr., our preschool offering. Rounding out the portfolio, we also have Télémagino, our French-language channel for Quebec viewers.”

Looking more closely at the lineup on the channels, Tedesco says Family Channel has benefited from “an ambitious origination program with 14 new commissions. We already had some popular franchises like The Next Step and Gaming Show (In My Parents’ Garage), but we have been able to deploy the Disney dollars behind new titles such as Lost & Found Music Studios and Backstage, a 30-episode scripted series from Fresh TV about a performing arts school. All this is part of our ambition to introduce more event-style drama to our schedule.”

Alongside the company’s originals, eye-catching content acquisition deals have helped soften the blow of Disney’s departure. “For Family Jr., we acquired shows from Mattel to go alongside our own preschool properties,” says Tedesco, “so that gives us a lineup including Thomas & Friends and Bob the Builder [alongside] Teletubbies, a DHX-owned property. In addition, we have titles such as Playdate from producer Sinking Ship.”

Also important is a new alliance with DreamWorks Animation (DWA) that will provide content for the F2N block and Family CHRGD, among other platforms. This works at three levels, says Tedesco. First, there is a five-year agreement to co-produce 130 episodes of original animated kids’ content at DHX Studios. Second, DHX has licensed 1,000 half-hours from DreamWorks Animation, to be broadcast across DHX Television’s channels from June 2016. And third, DHX has also signed a deal with DWA-owned AwesomenessTV for a further 300 half-hours of teen content.

While Tedesco believes the quality and range of content on the DHX channels will sustain Family Channel’s leadership position, he also argues that the broadcaster has come out with a more distinctive profile. “Increased emphasis on original Canadian content is a distinguishing mark. I also think our brand stands out because it says it’s OK to stay young. The world of imagination we provide appeals to kids—and also to their parents, who aren’t anxious to see their kids age up too quickly.”