WWE Announces Partnership With Nickelodeon to Air “Slam City”

WWE has been pushing its “Slam City” program as a staple of its WWE Network lineup, aimed primarily at children. And while it may cost $9.99 a month to watch it online, it appears the show is headed from the second screen to the first screen.

The company announced on its corporate website Tuesday it has agreed to a partnership with Nickelodeon to air the program on its outlet channel, Nicktoons. Below is a piece of the press release announcing the agreement.

“STAMFORD, Conn., October 21, 2014 – WWE (NYSE: WWE) and Nickelodeon today announced that WWE Slam City™, WWE’s kids property that includes an original animated short-form series, will debut tomorrow night during the NickSports programming block from 9–11 p.m. (ET) on Nicktoons. The 26-episode series is comprised of two-minute shorts featuring WWE Superstars John Cena®, Randy Orton®, Sheamus®, The Miz™, Rey Mysterio®, Kane® and Mark Henry® in a new animated world. The NickSports block airs every Wednesday from 9–11 p.m. (ET) on Nicktoons and features a rotating lineup of sports-themed content including series, specials and documentaries from leagues and key athletes, as well as acquired theatrical movies.

WWE Slam City, filmed in the next generation of stop-motion animation, features a new WWE animated character, The Finisher, who fires all of the WWE Superstars and sends them to WWE Slam City to find day jobs. With John Cena as an auto mechanic, Randy Orton as a zookeeper and Sheamus as a theater usher, these Superstars stay true to their WWE personas as they face life outside of the ring with new career challenges.

“This exciting partnership will allow us to bring WWE’s passionate fan base to the NickSports programming block while also creating new WWE fans through Nickelodeon’s massive audience,” said Michelle D. Wilson, Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer, WWE. “WWE programming reaches 3 million kids each week and we’re sure they’ll be excited to watch WWE on Nicktoons.”

“True to the spirit of the NickSports programming block, WWE Slam City offers kids and their families a fun, fresh way to experience these exciting WWE Superstars, and the series is a great complement to our diverse, and ever expanding, sports lineup,” said Keith Dawkins, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Nicktoons, TeenNick and Nick Jr.

WWE Slam City is a key component of WWE’s larger strategy to expand its reach to kids. In 2013, WWE’s national TV programming reached nearly 3 million kids each week, representing more than 20 percent of WWE’s average weekly TV audience. WWE also reaches kids through the number 2 action figure property in the U.S., WWE Studios productions of The Flintstones, Scooby-Doo WrestleMania Mystery and Christmas Bounty as well as partnerships with Mattel, Kraft Foods, Frito-Lay, Post Foods and MilkPEP. In addition, WWE supports programs that positively impact children and families around the world, including a 30-plus year relationship with Make-A-Wish as well as various literacy, education, anti-bullying and military initiatives.

Since its launch earlier this year, WWE Slam City has secured nearly 20 million views across a variety of platforms including WWEslamcity.com, Cartoonium, WWE Network, Hulu, Kabillion, Nintendo and AOL.

About Nicktoons
Nicktoons has the highest concentration of B2–11 across all television and offers programming such as the NFL RUSH ZONE franchise, Rob Dyrdek’s Wild Grinders, Dragon Ball GT, the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise, the Digimon franchise and the Power Rangers franchise as well as a roster of hits that have defined kids’ and animation lovers’ TV, including Avatar: The Last Airbender, Invader Zim, Danny Phantom, SpongeBob SquarePants, The Fairly OddParents, and The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius. Nicktoons currently reaches almost 68 million homes via cable, digital cable and satellite. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com. Nicktoons and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB).”

The press release notes WWE is continuing to target children as its primary audience, which should come of little surprise to many. The show is aimed at children, and will slide right into the programming on the network, which features Nickelodeon shows of past and present.

For more on the entire release, click here.

Editor’s Note

WWE must be salivating at this agreement. It pushes it into a whole new audience it may not have been reaching beforehand. Big get for sure.

Follow @JonAlbaSFC