NEW YORK, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Nickelodeon has acquired the Winx Club TV rights for the U.S. and the pay-TV rights for Latin America, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Benelux.  Winx Club features the adventures of six magical fairies who are hugely popular with young girls around the world.  The new partnership gives Nickelodeon, the number-one global brand for kids, access to the existing Winx Club TV series and two theatrical films.  The agreement also includes the co-development and co-production of seasons five and six of the series.

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"It is very exciting for us to be partnering with Iginio Straffi and Rainbow, who have had such tremendous success with this property internationally," said Cyma Zarghami, President of Nickelodeon/MTVN Kids and Family Group. "The Winx Club franchise is a big hit with young girls and we think there is great opportunity for it domestically as a property that allows us to fill a gap for girls in the six-to-eight-year-old range."

"We are very proud to start this collaboration with the most prestigious network in the world," declared Iginio Straffi, Founder and President of Rainbow S.p.A.  "This is a new challenge for our fairies who, I'm sure, will find a place in the hearts of American and British children."

"We are confident that Nickelodeon's global brand strength and scale combined with Rainbow's strong consumer products base will perfectly position us to take Winx Club to the next level for audiences and partners in multiple markets around the world," said Bob Bakish, President, MTV Networks International.

Nickelodeon will partner with Rainbow to co-develop and co-produce seasons five and six of Winx Club.  Seasons five and six will consist of 26 episodes each and will launch on Nickelodeon domestically and internationally (with the exception of Italy) in 2012.  Prior to launching the new seasons of Winx Club, Nickelodeon will introduce the series on the network in 2011 by airing four hour-long animated specials based on seasons one and two, as well as the episodes from seasons three and four.  

Winx Club is an animated action and fantasy series set in the mystical dimension of Magix where three schools educate modern fairies, witches and supernatural warriors from all over the universe.  Bloom, a young fairy in training from Earth, and five of her schoolmates form the Winx Club to combat their arch enemies.  Winx Club first debuted in Italy six years ago and quickly became a hit that has generated an international franchise of toys, books, clothing, and DVDs, as well as a CG feature film.

In addition to the series, Nickelodeon has acquired all merchandising rights to Winx Club within the U.S., Latin America, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Benelux.

About Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon, now in its 31st year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 100 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 16 consecutive years. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com.  Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B). 

About Rainbow S.p.A.

Founded in 1995, Rainbow SpA is a content company which develops animated and multimedia properties. Today it is one of the largest and most internationally renowned animation studios in the world. It is the only production company in Italy able to complete all stages of animation internally, including 3D animation. It currently has 200 full-time employees, as well as a network of animation freelancers and professionals who work with the company on a regular basis. The companies within the Rainbow group holding include: Rainbow Distribution BV in the Netherlands and Rainbow Spain (local offices which manage TV and licensing interests in association with the head office in Loreto); Rainbow CGI in Rome (film production, special effects and 3D animation); Rainbow Entertainment in Rome (fiction and live action); Rainbow Media in Singapore (videogames, internet, and on-line games); Tridimensional in Loreto (publishing and DVDs sold in kiosks); and Witty Toys in Amsterdam and Hong Kong (toy manufacturing).

Rainbow SpA creates and distributes original properties Winx Club, Huntik, PopPixie, Monster Allergy, Tommy & Oscar, and Maya Fox. For more information visit www.rbw.it

SOURCE Nickelodeon