El Rey Network has expanded its reach through a distribution deal with Dish Network.
Under the pact, financial terms of which were not disclosed, filmmaker Robert Rodriguez's (From Dusk Till Dawn, Sin City, Spy Kids, Machete) service is available on channel 253 on a number of Dish programming packages: America’s Top 200, America‘s Top 250 and America’s Everything Pak, plus Dish Latino offerings Plus, Dos and Max.
Curated by Rodriguez, the English-language network features original scripted and unscripted programming, movies, and cult-classic acquired series that aspire to awaken viewers' inner renegade.
“Dish is pleased to deliver El Rey Network’s cutting-edge content to our broad customer base,” said Warren Schlichting, Dish senior vice president of programming. “El Rey’s unique original series and films allow us to deliver a new style of programming to our customers.”
"We are pleased that Dish understands the importance of providing something truly different for their subscribers and we couldn't be more excited about our launch," noted Rodriguez. "In addition to being a destination for exciting and action-packed content, El Rey has also become synonymous with iconic programming that better reflects the diverse face of America. We are proud of what we've accomplished both in front of and behind the camera and want to thank our friends at Dish for supporting that mission."
El Rey was launched as part of the merger conditions allowing Comcast's purchase of NBCUniversal under which the nation's largest distributor had to roll out four multichannel networks. The network, in which Univision Communication has taken an equity position, also counts DirecTV, Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks and Cox Communications as affilates.
