How Nickelodeon Will Target Vacationing Viewers

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How Nickelodeon Will Target Vacationing Viewers


June 01, 2007

By Gail Schiller, The Hollywood Reporter

NEW YORK -- Nickelodeon, Marriott International and real estate company Miller Global Properties said Thursday they are launching a new global family hotel brand called Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott.

The first hotel, filled with such favorite Nickelodeon characters as SpongeBob SquarePants, Diego and Dora the Explorer, is set to open in early 2010 in San Diego, and plans call for 20 hotels around the world by 2020.

"We're here to unveil the next great chapter for Nickelodeon: connecting with kids and families everywhere," said Judy McGrath, chairman and CEO of MTV Networks, which operates Nickelodeon. "It's a terrific next step forward with a world-class partner for our booming recreation business."

Water parks will be the focal point of the hotels, where even the guest rooms and restaurants will be built with themes for kids in mind, said J.W. Marriott Jr., chairman and CEO of Marriott International.

"Besides being a great destination resort for families, we believe that these exciting properties will also attract younger adults and the young at heart," he said. "We expect these resorts to fill a very important segment of the marketplace, and we're very enthusiastic about the prospects for this new brand."

He said Miller Global would be the primary owner and developer of the hotels, which will be managed by Marriott.

The first Nickelodeon resort in San Diego will be a 650-room property at Liberty Station, which will incorporate a 100,000-square-foot water park and activity deck complex featuring a variety of pools and interactive attractions. Other locations are under consideration at family-oriented resort destinations in the U.S., the Caribbean, Mexico, the U.K., Europe, Asia, Australia and the Middle East.

"There's not a gadget or a screen where kids can't get to their best friends Dora, Diego, Drake & Josh, Neopets or the Naked Brothers Band," McGrath said. "And now they can share the good times with all of us on another frontier—the wildest adventure of them all—the family vacation."

Cyma Zarghami, president of Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group, said that based on market research the network conducted with children’s focus groups at Nickelodeon's pilot hotel—Nickelodeon Family Suites by Holiday Inn in Orlando—Nick realized that "bringing to life in physical manifestation the Nickelodeon brand and all of its fabulous attributes, which are playful and surprising and fun and kids first, was really an opportunity for us that we needed to make bigger. The first generation of Nickelodeon families will now have a place to go."

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Stuart Rosenstein Named Senior Vice President, Resorts and Theatricals, Nickelodeon Recreation

NEW YORK, July 30 /PRNewswire/ -- Stuart Rosenstein has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Resorts and Theatricals, Nickelodeon Recreation.The announcement was made today by Howard Smith, Senior Vice President, Nickelodeon Recreation, to whom Mr. Rosenstein will continue to report.

In this new role, Mr. Rosenstein will oversee licensing operations of Nickelodeon's expanding hotel business. He will work closely with Marriott International and Miller Global Properties in the newly developed partnership to create 20 new Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott around the globe. Specifically, Mr. Rosenstein will identify sites for development, oversee the creation of, and marketing worldwide for, the Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott brand, and ensure that the resorts deliver a unique experience for traveling kids and families.

Mr. Rosenstein will also continue to manage and lead Nickelodeon's critically acclaimed live theatrical business, overseeing show development,production, marketing, franchise support, sponsorship integration,affiliate promotion, merchandise development and finances for all live theatrical productions, both domestically and internationally. In addition, he will continue to run Nickelodeon's live events, Costume Character Program and theatrical licensing business.

"Stuart has been the guiding force behind the development of Nickelodeon's thriving live theatrical business and knows exactly what it takes to bring quality experiential entertainment to kids and families around the world," said Smith. "His experience and skill set are perfectly suited to guide the Nick Resorts and theatrical businesses into the next wave of innovation and growth."

A 17-year veteran of Nickelodeon, Mr. Rosenstein draws from his experience to translate Nickelodeon properties into successful theatrical productions. He launched Nickelodeon's touring theatrical business in 1992, taking the hit TV game show Double Dare on the road to sold-out venues. Since then, he has developed more than 14 major theatrical productions domestically and internationally, generating more than 10 million in attendance with over $400 million in box office revenue. Projects have included: Rugrats, A Live Adventure; All That Music and More Festivals; Blue's Clues Live!; Dora The Explorer Live!; this year's record-breaking hit Go, Diego, Go Live!; and the first rendition of SpongeBob Square PantsLive! overseas.

Rosenstein began his career at Nickelodeon in the marketing department and has held numerous positions within the Recreation group. Prior to joining the company, Mr. Rosenstein ran the commercial production unit for New York-based Playwrights Horizons. Before entering the work force, he studied Theatrical Production and Management at Boston University.

About Nickelodeon Nickelodeon, in its 28th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in almost 94 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 13 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc.

SOURCE Nickelodeon
http://www.nick.com/