BVS Entertainment
BVS Entertainment, Inc. (formerly Saban Entertainment and Saban International) is a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company that formerly used to be an independent US-Israeli television production-distribution company serving worldwide; the company originally founded as a music production company under the Saban Productions name in 1980 by Haim Saban and Shuki Levy. The company and its extensions are mostly known for producing and distributing children's programs for Fox Kids, Fox Family/ABC Family and Jetix.
| Formerly | Saban Productions, Inc. (1980–1989) Saban Entertainment, Inc. (1989–2001) |
|---|---|
| Company type | Private (1980–2001) Subsidiary (currently) |
| Industry | Animation Filmmaking |
| Predecessor | Saban Entertainment Inc. |
| Founded | 1980 (as Saban Entertainment) 2001 (as BVS Entertainment) |
| Founders | Haim Saban Shuki Levy |
| Defunct | 2001 (Saban Entertainment) 2014 (dormancy) |
| Fate | Acquired by The Walt Disney Company, then went dormant |
| Successors | Program library:
Disney General Entertainment Content Power Rangers franchise: Hasbro Entertainment Digimon franchise: Toei Animation Inc. Music library: BMG Rights Management |
| Headquarters | 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, Los Angeles, CA 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, New Castle, DE, U.S. |
Number of locations | 2 |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | Television programs Theatrical films |
| Owner | Haim Saban (1980–2001) News Corporation (1996–2001) The Walt Disney Company (2001–present) |
| Parent | Independent (1980–1996) Fox Family Worldwide (1996–2001) ABC Family Worldwide (2001–present) |
| Divisions | Libra Pictures International/Libra Home Entertainment (1994–2001) |
| Subsidiaries | BVS International N.V. (1989–2016) Jetix Europe N.V. (73.3%) (1996–2009) SIP Animation (1980–2023) Créativité et Développement (1996–1998) |
The company imported, dubbed, and adapted various Japanese series such as Maple Town, Noozles, Funky Fables, Samurai Pizza Cats, and the first three Digimon series to North American and international markets over syndication, including both animation and live-action shows. Saban also adapted various tokusatsu shows from Toei Company, including Power Rangers (based on the Super Sentai series), Big Bad Beetleborgs (based on Juukou B-Fighter), VR Troopers (featuring elements of Metal Hero series such as Space Sheriff Shaider, Jikuu Senshi Spielban, and Choujinki Metalder), and Masked Rider (an original interpretation using scenes from the Japanese Kamen Rider Black RX).
Saban has also distributed and provided music for television programs produced by outside companies such as The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Inspector Gadget and the first two dubbed seasons of Dragon Ball Z.
In the 1990s, Saban also operated a production division Libra Pictures, which produced programs targeted towards older audiences than Saban's usual kid-friendly output, as well as a syndicated subsidiary Saban Domestic Distribution, whose primarily purpose was to distribute shows for first-run and off-net syndication.