PHILADELPHIA (BUSINESS WIRE/BLACK PR WIRE) — Comcast Corporation announced it has selected four new minority-owned independent networks for broad distribution on its Comcast Cable systems between April 2012 and January 2014.
Two of the networks selected from among more than 100 proposals are majority black owned and two are majority American Hispanic owned and operated and programmed in English.
In the African-American Category are Aspire, which is spearheaded by entrepreneur and NBA Hall of Famer Earvin “Magic” Johnson, in partnership with GMC TV, and REVOLT, which was proposed by another entrepreneur and superstar, Sean “Diddy” Combs, and MTV veteran Andy Schuon.
According to a Comcast statement, Aspire will launch this summer.
“Aspire will be a network that encourages and challenges African Americans to reach for their dreams and will appeal to all generations,” Johnson said in the statement. “Aspire will celebrate our heritage, our groundbreaking achievements and the fearless talent that has shaped American culture.”
The network will create “opportunities for the new voices, new visions and the next generation of storytellers,” Johnson said.
REVOLT, which will launch in 2013, will have programming inspired by music and pop culture, including music videos, live performances, music news, and interviews, The network will incorporate social media interaction for music artists and fans.
“REVOLT is the first channel created entirely from the ground up in this new era of social media,” Combs said in the statement. “We’re building this platform for artists to reach an extraordinary number of people in a completely different way.”
The two Hispanic networks approved for the lineup are El Rey, which will launch in January 2014, and BabyFirst Americas, will start broadcasting this April.
El Rey was proposed by Hollywood director Robert Rodriguez and FactoryMade Ventures executives John Fogelman and Cristina Patwa. BabyFirst Americas was proposed by Spanish language television veteran Constantino “Said” Schwarz.
Photo: Earvin “Magic” Johnson
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