FIC to create unified brand for international Fox channels

Hernan Lopez

Fox International Channels is aligning all of its international Fox channels under a unified global brand.

Currently, the channel looks different territory-by-territory, but will now carry a single brand and on-air look around the world.

“There are key brands like Disney, but they are in kids, or HBO, but it is premium, or YouTube, which has the widest reach, but is not associated with quality in the mind of the consumer,” Hernan Lopez, president and CEO of FIC told DTVE sister title TBI. “The goal is for Fox to be the biggest quality entertainment brand in the world.”

Lopez said the worldwide rebrand was about two years in the making and followed a process of rebranding FX and some other FIC channels to Fox in international markets. He added that the unified look will help convince platforms that Fox and the FIC bouquet drive subs growth and retention.

The rebrand comes as Fox prepares to launch the latest instalments of The Walking Dead across its 126-channel footprint. There will also be a global launch for Matt Dillon drama Wayward Pines, which will go out internationally on the same day as on the Fox broadcast network in the US.

Lopez added that while Fox is in 244 million international homes, there are some key markets where it has yet to launch, namely China, France, the Czech Republic and Romania.

He added that ultimately FIC wants to get to 4-to-8 global releases a year. Last year the channel operator launched a dedicated programme sales division to help monetise its original programming internationally.

21st Century Fox-owned FIC has been conducting consumer research ahead of the rebrand. It said that a worldwide brand study conducted in 4Q14 showed Fox rated as a stronger brand than channels including Discovery Communications and the Walt Disney Company as well as those from NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. It was also, Fox claimed, a stronger brand than Netflix.

As well as a new unified brand, Fox is also consolidating its Facebook presence into one page, a process already completed by another FIC channel, National Geographic.