Joanna Padovano Tong

LOS ANGELES: Deluxe Entertainment Services Group has acquired Sfera (Sfera Studios and Sfera Labs), a global, cloud-based localization platform and distributed services firm.

BURBANK: Freeform has given the go-ahead to a fifth season of the original comedy series Young & Hungry, which will begin production next week for broadcast in 2017.

WASHINGTON, D.C.: Rachel Webber has been appointed to the newly created role of executive VP of digital product for National Geographic Partners (NGP), effective November 14.

SILVER SPRING: Susan M. Swain, co-CEO of multiplatform public affairs content distributor C-SPAN, has been appointed to the board of directors at Discovery Communications, effective in December.

NEW YORK: SundanceTV is planning a new daytime programming block that will feature the iconic television shows M*A*S*H, All in the Family, The Bob Newhart Show, The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Andy Griffith Show.

BURBANK: Freeform has given the go-ahead to the new comedy pilot Brown Girls, which comes from writers Shilpi Roy and Nastaran Dibai.

LOS ANGELES: Participant Media has acquired the digital entertainment media company SoulPancake, which was founded by actor Rainn Wilson (The Office, Six Feet Under) in 2009.

BURBANK: Legendary has appointed former FremantleMedia exec James Ngo as the company's senior VP of franchise management, a newly created position.

ATLANTA: Turner's truTV has given the go-ahead to I'm Sorry, a new scripted comedy series created by and starring Andrea Savage (Veep, Episodes).

NEW YORK: Amanda Hill has been promoted to chief marketing officer at A+E Networks, working out of New York under company CEO Nancy Dubuc.