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"If Rovio wants to rival Disney, it's going to need to broaden its distribution network, right? It turns out that the company is going the opposite way, bundling a video channel inside its apps to showcase its first TV show; Angry Birds Toons -- a 52-episode series chronicling the never-ending fight against those egg-thieving pigs. In addition to phones and tablets, the show will be available on Xfinity and Samsung Smart TVs, with Roku and TV stations outside of the US to follow in short order. Of course, we're not too sure Disney's worried -- after all, it's spent $4.05 billion to get the real Mark Hamill, not Red Bird in a blonde wig.Show full PR text      Rovio Entertainment to launch one of the world's biggest video networks in its games     March 11, 2013 -- Espoo, Finland -- Rovio Entertainment is bringing its weekly Angry Birds Toons animated series to fans around the world, setting an industry first in launching a video distribution channel across all of its Angry Birds game titles on smartphones and tablets. On the weekend of March 16-17th, Angry Birds fans can watch the latest adventures of the birds and pigs through a dedicated channel available in Rovio games, as well as on select video-on-demand channel providers, Smart TVs and connected devices. Additionally, the Angry Birds Toons series will also air on select TV networks around the world.     \"We've long wanted to tell our fans the story of the Angry Birds and the Bad Piggies, to introduce their personalities and their world in detail.\" said Mikael Hed, CEO of Rovio. \"We're delighted to introduce all this through our new channel, with easy and instant access to the stories in the palm of your hand. With over 1.7 billion downloads, we can reach a far wider and more engaged global audience than traditional distribution would allow. Launching the channel, and partnering up with some of the best video-on-demand providers and TV networks, is an important milestone for us on our journey towards becoming a fully fledged entertainment powerhouse.\"     \"We want to combine the feel of cartoon classics with modern twists on an unprecedented scale. Our team has been working tremendously hard to once again delight our fans with a new way to experience these loveable characters\", said Nick Dorra, Head of Animation at Rovio.     Angry Birds Toons will feature 52 episodes, with a new episode released each week, starting March 16th on TV broadcast and March 17th in all Angry Birds apps and on video-on-demand platforms.     To watch the series through Rovio's Angry Birds Toons channel, fans simply download the latest update to any Angry Birds game, which will unlock the new channel button in the game homescreen on March 17th.     In addition, Rovio has partnered with some of the best third party distribution platforms in the world to expand its global reach and drive even greater local engagement. An Angry Birds Toons channel will be available on all of Comcast's video platforms in the US including Xfinity on Demand, online at Xfinity.com/tv and the Xfinity TV Player app and globally on Samsung Smart TVs at launch, followed by Roku boxes and other platforms.     On March 16th, Angry Birds Toons will land on television networks around the globe. Fans can tune in each week to FOX8 in Australia, JEI TV in Korea, ANTV in Indonesia, Cartoon Network in India, MTV3 Juniori and MTV3 in Finland, the Children's Channel in Israel, 1+1 networks in Ukraine, Gulli and Canal J in France, SUPER RTL in Germany, TV2 in Norway, Canal 13 in Chile and Gloob in Brazil to see the latest Angry Birds Toons episode.     In addition, Activision, Paramount Pictures, BlackBerry, and Sony Pictures are partnering with Rovio at the launch of the Angry Birds Toons channel.     For more information and general media inquiries please contact media@rovio.com"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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