dun dun dunnn BET in the UK

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BET_UK
http://www.bet.com/OnTV/ontv_BETlondonlaunch.htm?Page=1

BET Comes To The U.K.
By Tonya Pendleton

Posted February 28, 2008 -- LONDON - After 28 years as the entertainment source for African-American entertainment and culture in the U.S., BET Networks launches officially in the United Kingdom. As of today, February 28, the network can be seen in Great Britain on Sky Guide Channel 209. At a launch event at the Odeon Theater in Leicester Square, BET executives answered questions about the network's chances of success in the U.K., as well as the programming. Initially, the plan is to start the 24-hour channel with the shows most successful in the U.S. - the flagship music show "106 & Park," the comical dating show "Hell Date" and the reality shows "College Hill" "Baldwin Hills." The BET Awards, The Hip-Hop Awards and the BET Honors are also part of initial programming as well as documentaries, films and news specials. But BET executives say eventually some U.K. based programming will join the channel's lineup.
Advertisement

"It's been 28 years in the making to get to the UK," BET's chairman and CEO Debra Lee told media gathered at the Odeon. "Today is truly a special day in the history of BET. I've always believed we had a strong global brand. We're Brooklyn to Birmingham, and I don't mean Birmingham, Alabama."

Duplicating the success BET has had in the United States should be helped by an ethnically diverse population in the U.K., which boasts 8.8 million digital satellite homes. BET already reaches more than 87 million households in the U.S., Canada and the Carribean. But this partnership expects to reach out to a U.K. audience hungry for black progamming. Their main network, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and popular British shows like "East Enders" have not provided the British audience with programming that reflects the country's ethnic diversity. BET hopes to step in and change that.

"We're thrilled about the new partnership," says Senior V.P. and GM Michael Armstrong. "Today is just the beginnning."

And the timing is certainly right. BET is enjoying its best ratings ever and a lineup with more original programming than at any point in the network's history. And London viewers are ripe for a new era of broadcasting. Veteran comedian Lenny Henry, who has his own show on the BBC, stunned the audience at a recent event for the Royal Television Society by speaking out about the lack of diversity on British television. "When I started, I was surrounded by a predominantly white workforce, and 32 years later, not a lot has changed," Henry told the audience.


At the BET launch event, Henry was optimistic about BET's chances for success and the positive impact that may have on allowing British talent more of an outlet. "It's a beginning. If there's a appetite for what BET is doing, and they can get a squeeze from the British audience, maybe they'll spend some money here. But we have to see the journey as beginning with one step."

BET executives said that including U.K. oriented programming was part of the overall plan, citing examples of integrating British acts into already existing shows. The Hip-Hop Awards includes an International Artist of the Year Award, and "College Hill 4," the latest incarnation of the hit reality show will include the show's characters making a visit to London.

"There will absolutely be a progression of U.K. programming on the network in time," BET President and Chief Operating Officer Scott Mills said. Stephen Hill, BET's Executive Vice President of Music Programming, Music and Talent, echoed that statement, saying he will strive to integrate U.K. programming into the American content as well.

"I think we're going to have a team on the ground here that will be able to do some special inserts into "106, " Hill said. "I think that what's attractive about "106 & Park" is that it is what it is. It's a music-based show but right now its in the U.S. I think what we're going to do is find some people on the ground here who can be our eyes and ears on hip-hop and youth culture in the U.K. to do a U.K. based version of "106 & Park."

Concerns about socially conscious programming specific to the U.K. were also addressed. Lee says that programs like the longtime "Rap it Up" campaign, which has raised awareness about HIV and AIDS will translate to an international audience. "We are an entertainment company," Lee said. "We are also a company that is committed to educating and informing our audience."

Tim Campbell, winner of the U.K. version of "The Apprentice" and founder of the charity The Bright Ideas Trust, which works to help young black businesses in the U.K. get started, says he's optimistic about the role BET could play in motivating young people.

"I think BET is a fantastic thing for the U.K. in terms of people's awareness of what our cousins that we're supposed to be shoulders to shoulders with are doing on the other side of the pond," Campbell said. "I think they also have a phenomenal responsibility to make sure they integrate fully with the diaspora here in the U.K. and get to know what the U.K. experience. People have been very, very disillusioned with what Black television actually stands for.

"I think BET has the brand, the economic base and the potential and drive to really give the diaspora here some content for what black people can actually achieve. People here are in famine for this kind of programming if it has the content that will show people, especially our young people, in a much more positive light."