MTV buys 'Name That Tune' for 3 channels

MTV is to make Name That Tune music quiz shows for MTV, VH1 and Country Music Television.

In a rare move the long-running format is being developed for all three cable channels.

MTV president of entertainment Brian Graden has commissioned six new episodes for each. The content of separate shows will be geared for each audience so MTV viewers can hear pop and rap while CMT will use country tracks.

Producer Sandy Frank and Media Rights Capital revived the show recently with Donny Osmond presenting but CBS decided not to continue it.

Graden said the agreement with the producers was the first time "from the outset, that we've decided to pursue [a format] jointly". He added it would be a "a significant reimagining" of the format.

"The play-along element of the show was so strong that it has to remain the same," he explained. "There's something about hearing a melody and that great rush you get when you know what the song is."

But he added: "We want to reinterpret the show for the digital age we live in."

There will also be as-yet-unspecified online tie-ins: "This played into our endgame, which is being able to create digital extensions."

The shows are expected to begin next year but their lengths, who will host and how they will be scheduled is unconfirmed.

Graden commented: "The options range from each channel taking a window, or a primetime block where we feed viewers from one channel to the next. We could even possibly air it on all three channels at the same time."

Executives from each channel will produce their individual versions: Tony DiSanto and Liz Gateley for MTV, Michael Hirschorn at VH1 and Bob Kusbit for CMT.

The long past of Name That Tune began in the 1950s and there were revivals through the 1970s and 1980s.