Network 10 is set to launch a new free-to-air channel, 10 Shake, which by day will air children’s content and from 6pm-6am focus on edgier content for adults under 40.
Joining other multichannels 10 Peach and 10 Bold, 10 Shake will include a variety of programming made available through parent company ViacomCBS, including from Nickelodeon, MTV and Comedy Central.
The children’s slate promises Bubble Guppies, Henry Danger, READY SET DANCE, SpongeBob SquarePants, PAW Patrol, Henry Danger, iCarly, Breadwinners, Bubble Guppies, Dora the Explorer, The Loud House, Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn, Sam & Cat, Sanjay and Craig, Shimmer and Shine, Team Umizoomi, The Thundermans and Top Wing.
Network 10 will also house its Australian C classified dramas on the channel, as well as other local kids shows Totally Wild, Scope, Gamify, Calvin and Kaison’s Play Power and Crocamole.
For adults programming will include The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, The Late Late Show With James Corden, South Park, Bojack Horseman, Pimp My Ride, Drunk History US, Inside Amy Schumer, Ridiculousness, Comedy Central Roasts and Stand Up Specials, Roast Battle, Tosh.0, Catfish: The TV Show, The Charlotte Show, Ex on the Beach, Lip Sync Battle, Just Tattoo Of Us, and The Charlotte Show.
Also on the schedule are films from the The Matrix and Hunger Game franchises, the Ocean’s series, The Lego Movie, Now You See Me 2, Ready Player One and Office Christmas Party.
Network 10 head of programming Daniel Monaghan said: “We are thrilled to be adding 10 Shake to our family of channels. It is a fantastic proposition for Australian viewers and includes a great array of content from ViacomCBS, a lot of which has never aired on free to air television before.
“10 Shake daytime will boast over 84 hours a week of the biggest kids’ TV shows on the planet including SpongeBob SquarePants, PAW Patrol and Henry Danger. It will provide a wonderful world of entertainment just for kids.
“10 Shake prime time will be the destination for mischievous big kids who love escapism television with plenty of bite, comedy and fun. With shows like The Charlotte Show, Catfish: The TV Show and Lip Sync Battle forming part of the schedule, it will be self-indulgent TV at its best.”
Screen Producers Australia (SPA) welcomed the launch of the channel, noting it was a “recognition that with the right backing and strategy” kids content can work on free-to-air television, and argued the independent sector was well placed to deliver a broad range of local kids content for the platform.
“With kids animation able to continue to operate throughout recent COVID shutdowns, and with strong safety guidelines in place for returning productions, there is minimal impact on the supply chain for Australian kids content going into next year,” it said.
Due to the impact of coronavirus, the Federal Government has suspended all Australian content quotas, including children’s content, until the end of this year.
In a response the the government’s recent options paper, Free TV Australia, which represents the commercial networks, called for the scrapping of sub-quotas, to be replaced with a simplified points system that it argues would give greater flexibility to meet regulated obligations.
In its case for ceasing the quota for children’s C and P shows, it pointed out the average child audience per show shrank to fewer than 1,000 last year and the percentage of time spent viewing children’s programming on catch-up services was less than 1 per cent.
There has been no launch date given for 10 Shake as yet.