Super RTL

History

On 24 August 1994, with Jeffrey Katzenberg's resignation, a reorganization of The Walt Disney Company took place in which Richard Frank became head of newly formed Disney Television and Telecommunications (DTT), which included Walt Disney Television International, which held Disney's Super RTL stake. The Luxembourgish CLT (owners of the German RTL channel) made a deal with Disney to form RTL Disney Fernsehen GmbH & Co. in 1995.

Super RTL

Super RTL was finally launched on 28 April 1995, with The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh as its first ever program (aside from showing Disney Channel's "TV" ident, Super RTL is not owned by Disney Branded Television, instead, it was owned by Disney's Buena Vista International Television Investments division). The Disney-CC/ABC merger led to DTT being split up in April 1996, Walt Disney Television International was transferred to Capital Cities/ABC in that same month. CC/ABC combined the international units, Walt Disney Television International and ACIBG, into Disney–ABC International Television (DAIT) in July. Around the same time, in the 1990s, Bertelsmann ultimately came out on top after having gradually increased its stake in the German television channel RTL. Following a legal dispute with RTL/CLT, Bertelsmann announced plans to merge the television businesses of UFA to form the joint venture CLT-UFA in April 1996. A merger agreement was signed on 8 July 1996. It was approved by the CLT board of directors on 5 December, and the formation of CLT-UFA was completed on 14 January 1997. As a result, German television channels such as RTL Television, Super RTL and VOX and international broadcasting services, including M6 in France, were all brought together under one roof.

The Fun & Action Tour, a Germany-wide roadshow event for children, was started in 1997 featuring TV program characters. The tour was later renamed the Toggo Tour. The following year, the channel became the top view channel by the 3-to-13-year-old target age group.

In 1999, the joint venture saw its channel make a net profit of DM 4.5 million, launched its website and started the Super RTL Licensing Agency to make more revenues from TV licensing. A new managing director, Claude Schmit, took charge of the venture in 2000.

Also in 2000, the preschool programming is labeled "Toggolino". Toggolino Club is started in 2002 and offers paid pre-school children education content.

The Toggo umbrella brand was introduced in 2001 for all activities for 6- to 13-year-old children. In 2002, Sony BMG label, Berlin Records, released the first Toggo Music CD. SuperRTL began using the 'Family Cartoon' rating label in 2006 for family viewing suitable animated films shown on Friday and Saturday night.

In 2005, Super RTL was granted a broadcast license for the preschool pay-TV channel Toggolino TV by the government media regulators for young children between the ages of 3 and 6. However, Toggolino TV was never launched. Bertelsmann turned over the learning platform Scoyo to Super RTL in 2009.

Program contents' changes, and post-Disney era (2014-present)

With the announcement of the launch of a free-to-air German version of Disney Channel causing a loss of Disney programming, Super RTL signed volume deals in October 2013 with Warner Bros. Worldwide Television Distribution and Sony Pictures Television for a slate of animated features and DreamWorks Animation (DWA) for 1,200 hours of programming until 2020. The DWA deal included shows from the Classic Media library. The channel also acquired programming to expand its views in the evenings with more adult TV shows to debut in its fall 2014 schedule: ABC Family's Pretty Little Liars, ABC's Once Upon a Time and Scandal and Syfy's Lost Girl supernatural series. As of 1 January 2014, Disney programming left the channel, because the broadcast version of Disney Channel launched on 17 January. However, Disney continued to hold its stake in the station.

RTL Disney TV LP launched its Kividoo subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services on 28 April 2015.

Sale of Disney stake and rebranding of Primetime block to RTL Super (2021-present)

On March 3, 2021, the RTL Group announced it had fully acquired Disney's stake in RTL Disney Fernsehen GmbH & Co. KG, putting Super RTL under its full control for the first time.

At the end of July 2023, it was announced that Super RTL would be renamed to "RTL Super" in the middle of August 2023. However, it was later confirmed that only Super RTL Primetime would rebrand under the name, and that the existing Super RTL channel wouldn't be affected.

In October 2024, it was announced that the Toggolino brand would cease to exist, with all children's programming being branded under the singular "Toggo" name.

Scrapped merger with Nickelodeon Germany (2024)

On April 24, 2024, Super RTL entered into a new major partnership with Paramount Global to secure a new free-to-air broadcast deal for Nickelodeon programming in Germany, and to fully acquire Nickelodeon Germany and replace it with a standalone Toggo branded network, subject to approval. On 18 September, it was announced that the German Federal Cartel Office (FCO) had blocked the Nickelodeon channel deal.

Programming

Children's

• Abominable and the Invisible City
• Alvinnn!!! and the Chipmunks
• Angelo Rules
• Barbie: It Takes Two
• Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures
• Bella and the Bulldogs
• Boy Girl Dog Cat Mouse Cheese
• The Deep
• DreamWorks Dragons: The Nine Realms
• The Fairly OddParents
• Grizzy & the Lemmings
• Inspector Gadget
• Karate Sheep
• Jade Armor
• Lego City Adventures
• LEGO DreamzZz
• The Loud House
• Mighty Express
• Mighty Mike
• Mr. Bean: The Animated Series
• Nate Is Late
• Ninjago
• New Looney Tunes
• Pertronix Defenders
• Pokémon Ultimate Journeys: The Series
• Rabbids Invasion
• Sally Bollywood: Super Detective
• Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?
• SpongeBob SquarePants
• Star Trek: Prodigy
• Teen Titans Go!
• Tom and Jerry
• The Thundermans
• The Tom and Jerry Show
• The Really Loud House
• Wild Kratts
• Woozle Goozle
• Zak Storm

Pre-School

• 44 Cats
• The Beachbuds
• Caillou
• Cocomelon
• Dino Ranch
• Hello Kitty: Super Style!
• Paw Patrol
• Peter Rabbit
• Peppa Pig
• Pocoyo
• Ranger Rob
• Super Wings
• Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!

RTL Super

• Angel
• Bones
• Columbo
• CSI: Miami
• Caïn
• House
• Monk
• Mr. Bean
• On the Case
• Rizzoli and Isles
• Snapped
• The Stalker Files
• Without a Trace
• The X-Files

Former programming

Toggo

• Almost Naked Animals
• Angela Anaconda
• Ben 10 (Revival series)
• Butt-Ugly Martians
• Camp Lakebottom
• Camp Lazlo
• DreamWorks Dragons
• George of the Jungle
• The Jungle Bunch
• Lassie
• The Lone Ranger
• My Knight and Me
• NASCAR Racers
• Numb Chucks
• The Powerpuff Girls
• Phineas and Ferb
• Sabrina: The Animated Series
• Sabrina's Secret Life
• The Skinner Boys: Guardians of the Lost Secrets
• Turbo Fast
• Zip Zip

Toggolino

• Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps
• Bob the Builder (original series)
• Bob the Builder (revival series)
• Blaze and the Monster Machines
• Calimero (2013 series)
• Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood
• Kate & Mim-Mim
• Justin Time
• Madeline
• Mike the Knight
• Octonauts
• Peg + Cat
• Pirates: Adventures in Art
• Strawberry Shortcake
• Tiny Planets
• Trucktown

Ravensburger TV

• The Brothers Flub
• Brum
• Clowning Around
• Costa
• Donkey Kong Country (season 2)
• Enid Blyton – Secret Series
• Flying Rhino Junior High
• George Shrinks
• Rotten Ralph
• Spielgalaxie
• Sweat
• Timothy Goes to School

Programming blocks

Super RTL's broadcast day is split between two different umbrella brands.

• Toggo - Super RTL's main umbrella brand. Originally focused towards a 6-13-year-old audience, but since October 2024, it has also been used for pre-school programming. The brand was first introduced in 2001.
• RTL Super - Airs repeats of drama shows and family-oriented live-action movies. The brand was first introduced in 2019 as Super RTL Primetime and was renamed in August 2023.

From 3 June 2001 until 2005, Super RTL ran a strand titled Ravensburger TV. Operated by RTV Family Entertainment (now Your Family Entertainment), this block aired for two hours every day except for Saturdays, and functioned as a bridge-in-gap between Toggolino and Toggo, airing programs aimed at both demographics.

From 2000 until 2024, pre-school programs were branded under the Toggolino brand.

Related services

Kividoo

A subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service that was launched on 28 April 2015. It features children's shows from DreamWorks Animation, Studio Hamburg, ZDF Enterprises, HIT Entertainment, BBC Studios and German publishing house Tessloff Verlag.

Toggo Plus

On 15 March 2016, it was announced that a timeshift service, Toggo Plus, would launch on 4 June 2016. The channel transmits Toggo and Toggolino's programs one hour later. Unlike the main Super RTL network, it is a paid service, and does not timeshift the "RTL Super" slot. Infomercials would fill out the remaining time. The launch allowed the Toggo/Toggolino strand to begin at 5:00am instead of 6:00am compared to before.

Toggo Radio

A radio channel that was launched on 15 June 2020. The channel is available on Super RTL platforms, online radio aggregators and smart devices and via Digital Audio Broadcasting, but not FM. Its content consists of chart music, children's songs and radio plays.

References

References

1. "TV Channel: Super RTL". European Audiovisual Observatory.
2. "SUPER RTL Fernsehen GmbH".
3. (10 February 2016). "Super RTL plans new TV channel". Broadband TV News.
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16. (1996-07-09). "Ein Wachstums-Schub für den Fernseh-Zwerg". Saarbrücker Zeitung.
17. . (30 April 2015). ["SUPER RTL: 20 YEARS – 20 FACTS"](http://www.rtlgroup.com/files/pdf1/2015-week18-Backstage-newsletter1.pdf). *RTL Group*.
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19. (23 May 2013). "Zattoo adds RTL channels to linear OTT". Broadbandtvnews.com.
20. Roxborough, Scott. (8 October 2013). "MIPCOM: With 'Scandal' and 'Scooby-Doo' Germany's Super RTL Takes on Disney Channel". The Hollywood Reporter.
21. (18 June 2013). "DreamWorks Animation signs TV deal with Germany's Super RTL". Los Angeles Times.
22. (22 April 2020). "Toggo Radio: Super RTL startet neuen Radiosender für Kids". DWDL.de.
23. (3 March 2021). "Disney sells its stake in Super RTL". Kidscreen.
24. Krei, Alexander. (2023-07-21). "Sender-Rebranding: Aus Super RTL wird RTL Super".
25. (2023-08-14). "Super RTL to turn into RTL Super in primetime only".
26. (11 October 2024). "Super RTL reorganizes its senior leadership team".
27. (23 April 2024). "Deal mit Paramount: Super RTL will Nickelodeon übernehmen". DWDL.
28. "The FCO puts down a merger between Super RTL and Nickelodeon".
29. "'ALVINNN!!!' Finds Homes in Spain, Germany".
30. "Third 'Angelo Rules' Season Launching at MIP".
31. "'Bella and the Bulldogs' on Super RTL".
32. "Technicolor Signs New Euro Broadcasters for 'The Deep'".
33. "'The Fairly OddParents' on Super RTL".
34. (26 May 2021). "Viacomcbs Consumer Products and Super RTL Expand Licensing Deal in Germany, Switzerland and Austria".
35. "France Télévisions, Super RTL welcome Mike".
36. "'SpongeBob SquarePants' on Super RTL".
37. (25 May 2025). "The Really Loud House on Toggo and RTL+".
38. "'Wild Kratts' Ready to Roam on Super RTL".
39. "DHX Reports Big Sales for 'Caillou' Worldwide".
40. "Hello Kitty Super Style".
41. "Entertainment One Announces Super RTL as Broadcast and Licensing Partner for Peppa Pig in Germany".
42. "9 Story's 'Naked Animals' Makes Sale Attack".
43. (28 August 2001). "Mattscheibe: Neu bei Super RTL: Schrille Gören und trottelige Eroberer". Faz.net.
44. "Cartoon Network's Ben 10 set for Super RTL".
45. "9 Story Sells over 50 hours of Toons to Super RTL".
46. "DreamWorks and Super RTL Sign Multi-Year Deal".
47. "Super RTL Picks Up 'Jungle Bunch' Season 2".
48. "TeamTO Nets Five Broadcasters for 'My Knight and Me'".
49. "9 Story's 'Numb Chucks' Strikes Multiple Sales".
50. "DIC's Sabrina Makes Int'l Sales Sweep".
51. "DIC secures six-year German deal".
52. "SLR's 'Skinner Boys' Gets Second Season".
53. "Multiple Disney Channels Pick Up Go-N's 'Zip Zip'".
54. "Super RTL Brings 'Angelina Ballerina: The Next Steps' to Germany".
55. "HIT Greenlights Second Season of New 'Bob the Builder'".
56. "Gaumont's 'Calimero' Hatches on Germany's Super RTL".
57. "FremantleMedia Racks Up 'Kate & Mim-Mim' Sales".
58. "'Justin Time' Jumps into Major European Markets".
59. "HIT Scores Big Deals for 'Mike the Knight'".
60. "Fisher Price Inks Three-Year 'Octonauts' Renewal".
61. "9 Story Multiplies 'Peg + Cat' Sales".
62. "Deals for 'WotWots,' 'Green Squad,' 'Pirates,' 'Fuzzy Tales'".
63. "DIC inks international Shortcake deals".
64. https://www.c21media.net/news/double-deal-for-sesame-workshop/
65. "Super RTL Picks Up Nelvana's 'Trucktown'".
66. "RTV scores Ravensburger block on Super RTL".
67. "BRUM MOTORS INTO GERMANY".
68. "RTV block doubles Super RTL slot average".
69. "New quiz format for Super RTL".
70. GmbH, DWDL de. "Super RTL legt sich noch ein weiteres Logo zu".
71. (14 August 2023). "Super RTL to turn into RTL Super in primetime only".
72. (21 November 2011). ""Ravensburger TV" erhält Programmfenster bei Super RTL - WELT".
73. "Super RTL kooperiert mit Ravensburger TV".