VH1 has announced it's acquired ABC's The Bachelor franchise via a licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. The agreement includes all The Bachelor and The Bachelorette installments through at least 2008.
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VH1 will air The Bachelor's first seven seasons during the first week of June, with one season of the show airing each day in marathon format. The marathon will kick-off with The Bachelor's Spring 2002 first edition on Sunday, June 1 and conclude with its Spring 2005 seventh installment on Saturday, June 7.
VH1 has enjoyed ratings success with its own The Bachelor-like serialized reality dating shows, including Flavor of Love, I Love New York and Rock of Love with Bret Michaels.
"The Bachelor is the granddaddy of the dating reality format. It's been a water cooler staple from the moment it premiered in 2002, and it's still on top of its game", said VH1 programming executive Ben Zurier.
"As we've seen with our own record-breaking Rock of Love with Bret Michaels and Flavor of Love series, dating reality has become the drama for the current generation of young adults, with an engaging mix of intrigue, romance, and surprises. The Bachelor and VH1 certainly feels like a good match."
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Despite the licensing agreement VH1 is unlikely to schedule The Bachelor reruns as a regular daily or weekly series, Zurier told Daily Variety in a Thursday report. He added the network prefers to air the show "as needed" in marathon format.
ABC Family had previously aired The Bachelor marathons during the show's first few seasons.
About The Author: Christopher Rocchio