NBC, Galan Sign Deal to Make English Telenovelas

NBC Universal Television Group said Monday that it had signed a two-year deal with Galan Entertainment to produce English versions of Spanish-language shows known as telenovelas.

Spanish broadcaster Telemundo, part of General Electric Co.’s NBC Universal, will license its program formats to Galan to develop shows in English, NBC Universal said.

Telenovelas, or short-run soap operas, are among the most-watched programs on Spanish-language networks such as Telemundo and Univision Communications Inc. That has drawn interest from English-language networks, with News Corp. announcing plans this month to create dramas in the telenovela format for its new My Network TV in September.

Galan President Nely Galan, the former entertainment president for Telemundo, has produced more than 600 television episodes in Spanish and English and created the reality show “The Swan.” The first project will be a version of Telemundo’s “Body of Desire,” the company said.

Telemundo’s Feb. 13 broadcast of “Body of Desire,” or “El Cuerpo del Deseo,” was watched by about 1.8 million viewers, making it the No. 25 Spanish-language program for the week ended Feb. 19, according to Nielsen Media Research.