Fox Kids to be rebranded under Disney flag

Fox Kids Europe is to be rebranded under the Disney brand, after details emerged of Disney's $5.3bn deal with Fox Family's previous owners News Corp and Saban Entertainment.

Under the deal, the Walt Disney Company takes 100% of Fox Family (81m subscribers), 76% of Fox Kids Europe (24m subs), as well as Fox Kids' Lat-Am channels (10m subs). Fox Family will be renamed ABC Family, and Fox Kids' channels will carry the Disney name.

Fox Kids' international output includes 14 channels in 18 languages in Europe, Lat-Am and Australia. FKE, with the remaining 24% of its stock publicly traded, will continue to be headed up by Ynon Kreiz.

Also included in the deal is Saban's 6,500-episode back library, including Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, Digimon, Spiderman and Beetleborgs, and its Entertainment Productions businesses.

The deal also covers the TV rights to Major League Baseball games two nights a week, plus between 8-11 play-off games. The deal – $3bn in cash, $2.3bn in debt assumption – is expected to take four months to finalise.

Excluded from the deal is the US service Fox Kids Network. News Corp will acquire Haim Saban’s interest in this channel.

{The acquisition strengthens our company's worldwide business of family entertainment,{ said Disney's chairman and ceo, Michael D Eisner. {The Fox Family Channel is one of the few fully distributed stand-alone channels and it gives us a platform for launching ABC Family.{

ABC Family will rely on family shows from ABC Television, ABC Cable Networks Group, ESPN as well as Disney's new expanded library.

{The acquisition of the Fox Kids international channels gives us entry into markets like Scandinavia, Poland and Russia, as well as allowing us to broaden our branded reach in markets like the UK, France, Germany and Lat-Am, where we already have a strong presence,{ said Disney's president and coo, Robert A Iger.

{We will eventually put the Disney name on the channels to take advantage of the strength of our brand.{