SNI Upfront

Scripps Network Interactive used its press upfront presentation in NYC Tues morning to announce a distribution deal with Cablevision adding 2.1mln homes for Cooking Channel and DIY Network on CVC's Optimum TV Preferred package and above. “We've been talking to them for a long time… this was the last big market that we've wanted to crack,” HGTV and DIY Network pres Kathleen Finch told Cablefax. The channels will launch May 22, in time for Memorial Day weekend. Vp, ad sales Susan Leigh said the deal got done a while ago, with a launch not required until near the end of 2014, but that CVC accelerated the timetable. “I think they recognized Cooking and DIY as lifestyle, [and] attractive to their constituency,” she said. Between the two nets, 15 new shows are debuting. Highlights of Cooking Channel include a June debut of “Real Girl's Kitchen with Haylie Duff ” and ” Rev Run's Sunday Suppers.” DIY Net has 7 new series, including celebrity home rehab shows “The Shatner Project” premiering in Oct and “Daryl's Restoration Over-Hall” (of Hall and Oates fame) in July. At Travel Channel, 9 pilots got greenlit. Highlights include “One Day on Earth,” a series depicting the point of view of every country on earth on a single day,” and “Breaking Borders,” where Peabody Award-winning correspondent Mariana van Zeller and chef Michael Voltaggio uncover personal and inspiring stories in conflict zones throughout the globe. Food Network has 16 new shows in primetime and 4 in daytime. “The Great Holiday Bake-off” coming in Q4, “The Big Tip” in August, where Rachael Ray gives lucky waiters the tip of their lives, as well as numerous digital extensions, such as “Chopped: After Hours” and “Star Salvation.” The standout for HGTV is “Ellen's Design Challenge,” a 6-part competition series bowing in 2015 and hosted by Ellen DeGeneres.