Comcast Launches VOD Offering to Promote The Wiggles' Debut on PBS Kids Sprout

Comcast announced Tuesday an "exclusive" VOD offering designed to promote the move of Australian children's entertainers, The Wiggles, to PBS Kids Sprout, its joint children's programming venture with PBS, HIT Entertainment and Sesame Workshop (note: according to Comcast, PBS Kids Sprout will be The Wiggles' "exclusive US Television home"; they will star in an interactive TV show, called "Sprout's Wiggly Waffle," that is set to premiere August 24th and that was profiled on itvt.com, July 30th). According to the company, the offering consists of various TV episodes handpicked by The Wiggles themselves, behind-the-scenes clips, and various movies, including "The Wiggles Present: Dorothy the Dinosaur's Memory Book" and "The Wiggles Go Bananas!" It is available this week in Comcast On Demand's "Top Picks" folder. "My children have grown up watching The Wiggles and I'm delighted that now other families can share The Wiggles' fun and entertainment together anytime with On Demand," Diana Kerekes, Comcast's VP of video entertainment, said in a prepared statement. "Our kids' programming is one of our most viewed offerings on-demand, and we are excited to continue to grow this category for parents and kids."

In related news: Comcast announced Monday that it is launching sports programmer ESPN's ESPN360 broadband video service on Comcast.net, the Web portal it offers to its high-speed Internet customers. The service is billed as offering live coverage of thousands of international sports events each year, including soccer (FIFA World Cup and other games), cricket (including the Cricket World Cup), lacrosse, football, basketball, and baseball. Among other things, it allows viewers to pause, rewind and fast-forward up to 15 simultaneous live events. It also makes recent coverage available on-demand.