Sky Deutschland and Turner Agree New Channels Deal

By Stewart Clarke

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Turner channels including and Cartoon Network have secured their place on the Sky pay-TV service in Germany.  and Deutschland have inked a new agreement that covers TNT Film, TNT Series, TNT Comedy as well as Boomerang and Cartoon Network in Germany and Austria.

TNT Series carries U.S. shows including “Seal Team,” “The Flash,” and “American Dad.” It will also have coverage of the upcoming Emmy Awards. U.S. TNT series including “Animal Kingdom” are also on the channel, which has been moving into original German drama with “Arthur’s Law,” and the critically acclaimed “4 Blocks” (pictured).

The renewed carriage deal also sees the HD version of the TNT Film channel carried in the Sky Cinema package. On demand rights to Turner shows are also covered in the new deal and will be included on Sky’s streaming services and its kids app.

“Our focus is on presenting our customers with the highest quality content,” said Manuel Kindervater, VP, partner channels, Sky Germany. “The self-produced series, the films and the high-quality children’s programs of Turner stations are clearly one of them.”

Matthias Heinze, Turner’s general manager, Eastern Europe & Benelux, added: “The new contract with our longtime partner Sky is an important step. We were not only able to jointly increase the distribution of some of our channels, but have long-term security.”