MTV US plans a rejig; decides to rope in celebrity talents

MTV US plans a rejig; decides to rope in celebrity talents

MTV

MUMBAI: MTV has announced its plans for vigorous development of its programming and is in the process of zeroing in on a broad pool of talent for its US feed.

The channel has decided to introduce fresh fare on Ten Spots. It has already negotiated pilot deals with celebrities like Cameron Diaz, Frankie Muniz, Fonzworth Bentley with P Diddy, Andre Harrell, Wilmer Valderrama, Stan Lee, Omarion from B2K, Rob Zombie and Lizzie Grubman.

In a bid to maintain its leadership position, as a company release claims, the music channel has commissioned pilots encompassing a range of subjects from animation to street racing to reality to music to news documentaries. All the projects are aimed at capturing the interests and lifestyles of the young adult audience.

These new projects are aimed at bolstering MTV's wildly successful Ten Spot and Sunday Stew programming blocks throughout 2004-2005, says the release.

The channel also announced that it is developing a new music performance series with Jay-Z named Ultimate- Live- Mash Ups. The show would bring artists from different musical genres together to mesh their distinctive musical styles into one powerful new sound, before a live audience.

"MTV's Ten Spot is not only the most watched block of television among 12-34 year olds but it has also grown tremendously - up 260 per cent- against the previous three-year period. For years, our constant state of development has allowed us to always have something new to offer our audiences, who have voracious appetites for fresh programming. With this, we'll ensure that Ten Spot remains a must-watch for our viewers," offered MTV president, programming, Brian Graden.