Nickelodeon and BET Ink Agreement to Air Live Action Series Just Jordan and Romeo! on BET

NEW YORK, Jan. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Nickelodeon, the number-one entertainment brand for kids, has joined with BET, the nation's leading television network providing quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs programming for the African-American audience, in a synergistic deal for BET Network to broadcast two of Nickelodeon's live action series: Just Jordan, a newcomer to the Nick line-up, and Romeo!, Nickelodeon's number-one hit with African American kids for one year. Just Jordan, which premiered on Nickelodeon Jan. 7, will debut on BET on Jan. 13 at 10 a.m. ET/PT, followed by Romeo! at 11:30 a.m. ET/PT. BET will air episodes from season one of Just Jordan one week after their individual premieres on Nickelodeon and all three seasons of Romeo! on Saturdays.

"This is a fantastic opportunity to broadcast and provide additional exposure to what we believe will become one of our newest live action shows, Just Jordan, and the already established hit Romeo!, with the African-American audience to which BET caters," said Tom Ascheim, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Nickelodeon Television. "We're very excited about building these kinds of synergistic opportunities with sister networks like BET, and look forward to future opportunities like this one."

"Lil' JJ's career began on BET's Coming To The Stage and we're excited to have him back," said Reginald Hudlin, President of Entertainment for BET. "When we started doing this deal, it made perfect sense to pair with Romeo's show, as both fit naturally as a programming block. As excited as we are about airing these shows on BET, we are just as excited about working with Nickelodeon, a great brand that makes fantastic shows." A special thanks to BET's Byron Phillips for making this deal happen.

Leading up to the BET broadcasts of Just Jordan and Romeo!, the network is rolling out a series of original promotional spots as well as repurposing various Nickelodeon promotional spots for their air.

Just Jordan stars breakout teen comedian/actor Lil' JJ (Beauty Shop, Yours, Mine & Ours) in a multi-generational, half-hour comedy based on his standup routine. Lil' JJ, who was discovered in 2003 on BET's comedy competition show Coming To The Stage, plays Jordan, a recent transplant from Little Rock to Los Angeles - mom Pam's (Shania Accius) hometown. He's just a regular teen trying to finding his footing in his new world, splitting his time between school and waiting tables at his curmudgeonly grandpa's (Beau Billingslea, Cowboy Bebop) legendary diner, Papa Grant's Fish 'n Grill. What little time he has left over is spent trying to ingratiate his new friends including school heartthrob/jock Tony (Justin Chon, Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior), witty cousin Tangie (Raven Goodwin, Lovely and Amazing) and preppy, politically minded Joaquin (Eddy Martin, Rebound) -- as well as his adoring, albeit style-cramping little sister Monica (Kristen Combs). And he has a huge crush on snooty, but beautiful Tamika (Chelsea Harris) -- the un-gettable girl. Creator Alison Taylor (The Cheetah Girls, Lizzie McGuire) and Ralph Farquhar (Moesha, Proud Family) serve as executive producers of the Nickelodeon Television Production Just Jordan, which airs Sundays, 7:30-8 p.m. (ET/PT) during TEENick on Nickelodeon.

Romeo! is a comedy about a mischievous kid with one thing on his mind ... going platinum! Starring hip-hop mogul Master P and his son, platinum recording artist Lil' Romeo, Romeo! premiered on Nickelodeon in 2003. The series follows Percy Miller (Master P), a single dad and music industry executive struggling to maintain a normal life for his children while managing his son's ambition to be a musical artist. The ethnically blended Miller clan includes Romeo (Lil' Romeo), the rambunctious force behind the family's musical aspirations; Jodi (Erica O'Keith), Romeo's 16-year-old perfectionist sister; Gary (Zachary Isaiah Williams), Romeo's ever-adorable six-year-old little brother; and Louis Testaverde (Noel Callahan), Romeo's 11-year-old, level-headed foster brother who is also his best friend. On average, in 2006 Romeo! attracted 1.6 million total viewers (persons 2+) and has been the number-one cable program among African American kids 2-11 for a year, and among tweens 9-14 for three quarters. Master P, Tom Lynch, and Fracaswell Hyman serve as executive producers for the series, produced by Nickelodeon and The Tom Lynch Company.

About BET

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom, Inc. (NYSE: VIA) , is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 84 million households according to Nielsen media research, and can be seen in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of businesses extensions: BET.com, the Number 1 Internet portal for African Americans; BET Digital Networks -- BET J, BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Mobile, a service venture into the lucrative world of ring tones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, an extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

About Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon, in its 27th 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 92 million households and has been the number-one- rated basic cable network for more than eleven consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA) .