Viacom International Media Networks, a unit of Viacom Inc., today announced Street Surfing as the pan European sponsor of the Nickelodeon 2011 Kids’ Choice Awards. Street Surfing’s new Wave Scooter will be featured in all promotional activity in a build up to the April 2 show.

Street Surfing’s new Wave Scooter, called the Whiplash Scooter in the UK, will be featured on on-air billboards, all marketing and press materials, and presence on KCAs international online destinations.

The sponsorship also includes an online competition with the chance for the winner and their family to attend the show in Los Angeles. The Grand Prize winner will also be the first to road test Street Surfing’s new Wave Scooter through a test course in Los Angeles the day before the show. Additionally, 11 runner-up winners will get a scooter.

The sponsor markets include Austria, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, UK, France, Ireland, Italy and Belgium.

When I first saw the movie Madagascar, my favorite characters were the penguins. Apparently, I was not alone in thinking this—the penguins now have their own Nickelodeon cartoon, which is about to go global.

MTV Networks International, owned by Viacom, Inc., has signed agreements with multiple international broadcast partners across Asia-Pacific, Europe, and Latin America, to air its CG-animated Nickelodeon comedy series, The Penguins of Madagascar, from Nickelodeon and DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc.

Recently launched for international syndication, The Penguins of Madagascar is based on the penguins from DreamWorks Animation’s feature films, Madagascar and Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa.

More than 40 program sales deals have been closed in all major markets including China, Brasil, France, Italy, Hong Kong, Mexico, and the UK.

— Jennifer Sinclair

For some of us, reality shows are a guilty pleasure, a taboo we don’t talk about it public. For others, they’re the hot topic around the water cooler at the office. Either way, reality shows have become an American pastime. Now, MTV is taking some of it’s most popular reality shows global.

MTV Networks International, owned by Viacom, Inc., has closed six new deals, which will see reality shows from its dedicated formats catalogue adapted and localized for broadcast in key markets including Australia, France, Italy, and Spain.

In Europe, MTV’s quirky, controversial dating show, A Shot At Love With Tila Tequila, is being picked up by one of France’s creative television producers, Banijay Entertainment. The format of Room Raiders, an MTV classic, is airing on Spain’s Antena Neox as a result of a partnership with Abril Productions. Additionally, following an agreement with broadcaster LNK, local production house Betabu will produce the format in Lithuania.  Italian broadcaster Mediaset has closed a deal for Spike’s reality parody, The Joe Schmo Show, for potential broadcast on one of its local channels later this year.

In Australia, the format of Hell Date, BET’s unique twist on a dating show, has been optioned by Victory Hill Entertainment, and Screentime will adapt make-over reality series From Gs to Gents into a local format for the market.

“We’re in the hugely fortunate position of being able to exploit MTV Networks’ unique and unparalleled library of content across all genres and brands and as a result, our formats business is booming,” says Caroline Beaton, senior vice president, program sales, MTV Networks International. “Our production and broadcast partners around the world know that our iconic hit shows travel well, are easily localized, and bring with them a caché and contemporary edge that’s unique to our brands.”

What’s your favorite reality TV show? Why do we watch them? Is it for the characters we love to hate? Is it to live vicariously through young, sexy people who party all day while we sit in cubicles wearing ties and taking conference calls? Is it because we love gossip and drama? What do you think makes reality TV so appealing to men and women of almost every age group? Leave us some comments and let us know!

(My favorite MTV reality show was Singled Out, with Jenny McCarthy and Chris Hardwick. Remember that one? Think 1995).

As the July theatrical premiere of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies’ The Last Airbender (do NOT call it “Avatar”) nears, Nickelodeon and Viacom Consumer Products (NVCP) has signed a several global and international territory deals.

Spin Master is launching action figures, vehicles and role play items featuring The Last Airbender heroes and villains, from the M. Night Shyamalan film based on Nickelodeon’s TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender. Mutli-territory and local deals include apparel categories signed with TV Mania, Collective Brands, Mlab Concepts and Aykroyds; publishing categories are covered by Simon & Schuster UK, Egmont UK and Egmont VGS, Random House and Alligator Publishing. Herding Heimtextil has signed a deal for bedding.

In the stationery categories Trends International, Alpa UK, Paperline Designs and Union-Transit Company have signed  deals, alongside Procos for party paperware. Poster and badges are signed to Pyramid International, accessories to Sandylion, dress up to Rubies, puzzles to Toyster and back packs to Vast Sky.