Mumbai, Aug. 29 :     Cable TV viewers have never had it so good. Even before the euphoria over HBO could die down, Zee has announced a tie-up with Hollywood studio major Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, throwing open the doors of its huge library of quality films to audiences here. By striking an alliance with MGM to launch a co-branded movie channel to cater exclusively to the South Asian market, Zee Telefilms has pulled off a coup in the sizzling television entertainment industry. Announcing the initiative to augment its movie content, the local entertainment major said its English movie channel, Zee Movies, will be renamed and relaunched as Zee-MGM channel in mid-October. Ensnaring the 'roaring lion' - MGM's famous insignia - will hopefully attract audiences back to the channel and provide the network with a rich library of Hollywood flicks. The alliance will enable Zee to be on an equal footing vis-à-vis HBO, an offshoot of Time-Warner, MGM's arch rival in Hollywood. Speaking to The Telegraph, Zee Telefilms CEO R.K. Singh said: 'The joint venture channel will enjoy the intrinsic strength of the strong MGM brand that enjoys top-of-the-mind recall as the premier Hollywood studio. MGM's 'roaring lion' symbolises and defines Hollywood for audiences across all age groups.' With the lion's share of titles from the modern era - more than 3,000 titles produced since 1960 - in the MGM stable, the viewers of the new channel in India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and the Maldives can look forward to a varied offering from the network, Zee said. Asked to reveal the exact nature of the tie-up, Singh said: 'We will have the controlling stake.' He declined to give further details on the equity holding pattern. 'Continuing with Zee's tradition of offering its viewers the very best in quality programming, the MGM library not only fulfils that tradition but also brings to the Indian movie buff a slice of the history of the major western cinematic oeuvre. It also symbolises ZTL's philosophy of creating strategic partnerships to leverage its inherent strengths,' Singh added. Buoyed by the news, the Zee scrip scored impressive gains and closed the day at Rs 506.10 from the previous day's Rs 483.75. MGM Worldwide Television Distribution handles global television distribution and television programme co-productions for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. Through MGM Worldwide Television Distribution, nearly 4,100 feature films and 8,900 television episodes are available to the global television market. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is actively engaged in the worldwide production and distribution of entertainment products, including motion pictures, television programming, home video and DVD, interactive media, music and licensed merchandise. The company owns the largest modern film library in the world.