London – Pre-school channel JimJam has launched in the Middle East and North Africa on DTH pay TV service Showtime (DTH), airing 12 hours daily, with various programmes dubbed in Arabic. Targeting children aged 1-6, JimJam offers a programming mix of animation, song and dance series, story-telling, puppets and claymation. The channel also provides English language learning segments where basic English words are introduced, along with learning blocks on colours, numbers and shapes that recur. JimJam features children’s properties including Thomas & Friends, Bob the Builder, Barney & Friends, Fireman Sam, Kipper, Oswald, and the recently acquired Dorothy the Dinosaur. Wayne Dunsford, general manager, JimJam said, “The take up of the channel has been phenomenal and we’re looking forward to making further announcements regarding our ever-growing reach in the coming weeks.” Chello Zone and HIT Entertainment are behind the international launch and distribution of JimJam after acquiring the channel in September 2007.