National Geographic Global Networks (formerly National Geographic Channels Worldwide and National Geographic Channels International) is a business unit within National Geographic Partners (a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and the National Geographic Society) and Disney Entertainment (who handles distribution and advertising sales for National Geographic Global Networks) that oversees the National Geographic-branded television channels: National Geographic, Nat Geo Kids, Nat Geo Music, Nat Geo People and Nat Geo Wild and National Geographic Studios (formerly known as National Geographic Television). The unit itself was a joint operation between 21st Century Fox (21CF) and the Society, but it was later integrated into the new joint venture National Geographic Partners which they formed in 2015. On March 20, 2019, 21CF's share in National Geographic Partners was assumed by Disney, following its acquisition of most 21CF businesses.[1]
History
National Geographic had moved towards launching a US cable channel in 1982, but backed out. National Geographic Television, National Geographic Society's for profit TV arm, and NBC formed a joint venture, National Geographic Channels (NGC). NGC then partnered with BSkyB to launch on September 1, 1997 National Geographic Channel services in U.K. and Ireland via BSkyB, Scandinavia via Telenor and Australia via Foxtel. Foxtel and BSkyB were then owned in some form by Rupert Murdoch. Sandy McGovern was president of NGC at the time.[2] The 50/50 partnership was formed to expand NatGeo's National Geographic Television's productions, head by Tim Kelly, that was producing National Geographic Explorer for CBS. The original American version of the channel was launched on January 7, 2001 with Laureen Ong as president and Andrew Wilk as head of programming. National Geographic Society took down its museum and built a TV studio. At the time, the NatGeo kept its TV production unit and got a "sweet heart" guarantee production contract of 44 hours per year at an estimated $500,000 per hour of TV.[3] Additional National Geographic channels in other parts of the world were also launched under the original joint venture.[4]
In 2007, Ong was replaced by David Lyle, from the just closed Fox Reality channel, as CEO and president Howard Owens. In 2010, the company launched Nat Geo Wild channel in the US to go up against competitor Discovery Channel. Ratings dropped as a whole and Lyle and Owens left in 2014. Courteney Monroe moved up from her head marketing post to take over NGC US.[3]
National Geographic Partners unit
On September 9, 2015, the Society announced that it would reorganize its media properties and publications into a new company known as National Geographic Partners, which would be 73% owned by 21st Century Fox. This new, for-profit, corporation would own National Geographic and other magazines, as well as its affiliated television channels—most of which were already owned in joint ventures with Fox.[4] In October 2016, it was announced that the National Geographic Channel, the flagship documentary channel, would drop the word "Channel" from its name.[5]
Channels by region
All of National Geographic-branded television channels are operated as a part of this unit's business. The Society provides most of programming on the channels, while Disney's broadcast-related units handle distribution and advertisement sales of the channels. In most cases internationally, the National Geographic and Disney channels cross-promote each other. In some territories, the versions of National Geographic channels are directly operated by Disney.
Current
Americas
Anglo-America
- United States
- Canada
- The following channels in Canada are operated by Corus Entertainment under license.
Latin America
- Spanish-speaking countries
- National Geographic (with sub-regional versions for Mexico, Colombia, Central America [which also covers Caribbean islands], Pacific [Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia], and Atlantic [Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay])
- Brazil
Asia
NGC Network Asia, LLC operates all of National Geographic-branded television channels across Asia except India and Japan.
NGC Network Asia previously represented television channels from Fox International Channels (FIC) in the region, but they were transferred to the newly formed Asian branch of FIC in the 2009 reorganization of Star TV.[6]
The Asian operations also oversee National Geographic TV channels in the Middle East and North Africa (except Israel).
- Middle East and North Africa
- India
- Disney Star handles channel distribution and advertisement sales in the region.
- Japan
- The following channels in Japan are operated by Walt Disney Japan.
Europe
The European operations also oversee National Geographic TV channels in Israel, Australia and New Zealand. It is also responsible for the channels in Sub-Saharan Africa.
- Balkans
- Czech Republic and Slovakia
- National Geographic
- National Geographic Wild
- France
- Ukraine
- National Geographic
- National Geographic Wild
- Greece
- Netherlands and Belgium
- Poland
- Portugal
- Romania
- Nordic and Scandinavia
- United Kingdom and Ireland
- Spain
- National Geographic
- National Geographic Wild
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Israel
- Germany
Former
- India
- Italy
- Japan
- Latin America
- Spanish-speaking countries
- Brazil
- Middle East and North Africa
- Russia and Belarus
- Australia and New Zealand
- Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea
