Fox Reality converting to Nat Geo Wild

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Fox Cable Networks, National Geographic Ventures and National Geographic Channel U.S. announced the upcoming launch of “Nat Geo Wild,” a new cable network dedicated to bringing audiences natural history programming — offering intimate encounters with nature’s ferocious fighters and gentle creatures of land, sea and air. Like National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo Wild will be a joint venture between NGV and FCN.


Scheduled to launch in the US in spring 2010, Nat Geo Wild will be available in both standard and high-definition live feeds and video on demand to all distributors. As part of the launch, FCN will be offering distributors the opportunity to transition carriage of Fox Reality Channel’s nearly 50 million subscribers to Nat Geo Wild.

Nat Geo Wild is the fastest growing channel of the National Geographic portfolio networks, with launches in France, Germany, Australia and Latin America in the past year. It also is the first to move from overseas into the U.S. market and the first to be programmed globally by a single executive. Geoff Daniels, senior vice president of Development & Production for National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) for four years, has been named executive in charge of programming for Nat Geo Wild, dually reporting to EVPs of content for NGC and NGCI, Steve Burns and Sydney Suissa, respectively. Nat Geo Wild will be managed in the US by Steve Schiffman, GM.