It looks like Sesame Street has finally found its way to cable television.
According to ABC News and the Associated Press, after 46 years on air, Sesame Workshop has agreed to a five year deal with HBO that will allow new episodes of the historical TV show to air on the cable network first.
Some question the change. Since HBO is aimed towards an adult audience, how would Sesame Street connect to children through HBO? According to Joan Ganz Cooney, co-creator of the series, the show is trying to “adapt to the times.”
There are many ways children take in TV. Netflix and DVR services usually pile up the queue of your cable boxes. Competitors such Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu also have children programming as an option for those who have their services. With this change, HBO is getting a leg up on competitors by offering new episodes of Sesame Street for HBO NOW subscribers.
For PBS, its hard to compete. HBO is planning to double the show’s production and according to Sesame Workshop’s CEO, Jeffrey D. Dunn, the network will offer “critical funding” for the show to strive on cable TV.
But all is not lost, the new deal promises to keep Sesame Street on PBS. The show will continue to air on the former network, with the new episodes airing on HBO first. Nine months after the episode is released it will then air on its original home, PBS.
HBO will also have license to 150 original episodes of the children show for kids and adults to watch.
The times they are changing, but both sides are looking like “friendly neighbors”.
Check out a clip of one of BackstageOL’s favorite Sesame Street parodies:
