MUMBAI: BBC Worldwide Channels has announced the launch of its first wholly-owned, Spanish-language channel in the US.
CBeebies, the BBC-branded channel dedicated to preschoolers, will be available through Dish Network
, the third largest pay-TV provider in the US.
Dish Network, which is currently available in 13.78 million homes in the US, will make CBeebies accessible to all subscribers of its DishLatino package and newly-launched DishMexico package on Channel 848.
The channel will be a live feed of BBC Worldwide‘s Latin American version of the channel, which launched in Mexico in August 2008.
BBC Worldwide Channels MD Darren Childs says, "The introduction of a Spanish version of CBeebies into the U.S. Hispanic market is a momentous achievement for BBC Worldwide Channels in this hugely competitive territory.
"As well as complementing BBC AMERICA, which recently celebrated its tenth anniversary, it means that we‘re able to reach out to millions of Americans for whom Spanish is their first language."
BBC Worldwide VP channels, Latin America Jessica Rodriguez says, "CBeebies has captured the hearts of millions of children across the globe, and I‘m thrilled that we‘re introducing it into this important market through DISH Network.
"The channel provides a safe environment in which children can ‘learn through play‘, and I‘m sure it will be as popular with preschoolers and their parents in the US Hispanic market as it is in other territories."