e on TikTok: yes I’ll watch this guy spraypaint a credit card. Me on Netflix: this award-winning film doesn’t really appeal to my interests.”
Credit to @theDapperilla for this observation, which summarises the existential crisis facing film and TV industries in late 2024 as our daily smartphone habits rewire our brains into something resembling a steak tartare starter at a Cannes beachside restaurant.
opportunities” that Lionsgate and AI start-up Runway are seeking to produce together.
Just over a year ago, Alex Mahon, CEO of Channel 4 in the UK, warned broadcasters are “sitting on a generational timebomb” when it came to the changing ways in which viewers are consuming content. It feels like that timebomb has well and truly exploded. In its blast radius are endless reboots and spin-offs that are creatively only a hairs breadth away from the “capital efficient content creation
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: YouTube
What producers, distributors and broadcasters need to know if they are to to succeed on the streaming giant.
AHEAD OF THE CURVE: AI & IP
AI start-ups are willing to pay substantial sums for film and TV IP, but what are the factors library owners should consider?
NEWS ANALYSIS: PSBs
The rise of the political right in Europe has challenged the independence of pubcasters like never before.
AHEAD OF THE CURVE: BBC Studios
The BBC’s commercial arm is growing its activities on YouTube and TikTok.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: Karl Warner
The ex-C4 exec is set for a new role creating IP and formats for BBC Studios.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: Casey Bloys
HBO’s CEO on competing with social pla orms and Max’s local strategy.
NEXT BIG THINGS: 21 on 21
Our choice of the 21 trend-setting shows you can’t a ord to miss at Mipcom.
COUNTRYFILE: Spanish unscripted
How is increasing foreign ownership of local prodcos impacting domestic formats and IP?
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: Onza José María Irisarri on how the prodco and distributor aims to stay ahead.
CONTENT STRATEGIES: Max
The streamer’s Spanish arm eyes scripted copros and unscripted formats.
COUNTRYFILE: Spanish scripted
The battle to bring bestsellers to the screen as fees for literary IP soar and international players muscle in.
IP has gone from something that is created to being something to acquire. But as Baby Reindeer creator Richard Gadd said during his recent Emmy acceptance speech: “You don’t need big stars, proven IP, catch-all storytelling to have a hit. So take risks.”
The tragedy is the ongoing US$170m lawsuit surrounding Baby Reindeer may spook the industry so much the Netflix series ends up doing more harm than good, despite it being a best-in-class example of an original drama.
Meanwhile, a link has to be made between social media and the rise of right-wing governments in Europe (page 25). YouTube – where the future of TV will most likely play out – is not without blame.
As a recent social media post I came across on Facebook highlights: “My mum loves YouTube and
CONTENTS
CONTENT STRATEGIES: SkyShowtime
The streamer wants to commission locallanguage scripted and unscripted.
THREE-YEAR PLAN: Secuoya Studios Plans for global expansion and a move into English-language content.
CONTENT STRATEGIES: Atresmedia
The broadcaster is eager to join copros that speak to a Spanish audience.
CONTENT STRATEGIES: Rakuten TV New reality formats and branded content are a priority for the streamer.
CONTENT STRATEGIES: Movistar Plus+
The service wants to find a non-fiction equivalent to its hit drama The Messiah.
DEVELOPMENT SLATE: Glow
AHEAD OF THE CURVE: Microdrama
Will ultra-shor orm storytelling be too big for Hollywood to ignore now it has taken China by storm almost overnight?
COUNTRYFILE: South Africa
How fluctuating interest from the major players could a ect the SA market.
DEVELOPMENT SLATE: Universal Int’l
A deep dive into the Brazilian entertainment business, from opportunities to coproduce with and film in the country, to the financial support being pumped into the sector and the strategies and content needs of the local players.
uses it daily. But I’ve noticed her recommended videos are getting increasingly right-wing despite her not having watched anything remotely similar.”
We have known for years that social media thrives on polarisation. Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast, allegedly wrote in a leaked internal onboarding document for his company that the more “extreme” a YouTube video title, “the better.”
But more than ever, YouTube is keen to help broadcasters to succeed on its platform (page 15), perhaps in an attempt to de-toxify some of its darker corners. It’s a significant opportunity, but producers must rethink both their content and approach while ensuring they resist the race-to-the-bottom the algorithm encourages.
Donaldson believes “99% of TV shows would flop on YouTube.” Therein lies the challenge facing the industry today. Read on to find out how you can bring that percentage down. Nico Franks
AHEAD OF THE CURVE: AI
Tech allowing you to simulate the voices of iconic figures like David Attenborough exists – but should we use it?
CONTENT STRATEGIES: National Geographic
Ways to work with the giant as it seeks new approaches to established genres.
CONTENT STRATEGIES: France TV
The PSB is on the hunt for ambitious docs that reveal history or depict the future.
THREE-YEAR PLAN: A er Party Studios
A one-stop solutions shop that aims to bridge the old and new media worlds.
FORMATS
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP: Cathy Payne
Banijay Rights’ CEO will receive the Gold Award at the International Format Awards during Mipcom.
NEXT BIG THINGS: BBCS TalentWorks
BBC Studios TalentWorks is allowing the commercial arm of the BBC to develop new content and IP with creators.
AHEAD OF THE CURVE: Travel and adventure
How YouTube and streamers are changing the perennially popular TV genres of travel and adventure.
THREE-YEAR PLAN: FRAPA
Jan Salling and Phil Gurin discuss the challenges the format rights agency faces as it nears its 25th anniversary.
PRESENT IMPERFECT FUTURE TENSE
As massive change sweeps through the global entertainment business, C21’s David Jenkinson looks at what you can do to define your place in The New Content Economy.
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BASED ON A TRUE STORY, THIS GRIPPING INTERNATIONAL CRIME THRILLER SPANS CONTINENTS, FROM THE REMOTE HEIGHTS OF THE INCA TRAIL TO THE BUSTLING STREETS OF MUNICH AND NEW YORK
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Make YouTube work for you
What’s your YouTube strategy? It’s the question everyone leading a TV company – from the smallest producer to the biggest broadcaster – is asking themselves as it cements its position as the platform where the future of television will most likely play out.
LA-based Fede Goldenberg, head of TV and film ad-supported VoD partnerships at YouTube, is the exec at the Google-owned platform tasked with shepherding the traditional TV industry through this transition.
It’s a business Brazilian-born Goldenberg is familiar with, despite having spent the past 13 years at YouTube, initially in São Paulo before moving to California a decade ago. Before that, he worked at Fremantle, Terra Networks and Brazilian broadcasting giant Globo.
At the latter, Goldenberg spent a year as head of content distribution – precisely the kind of role currently disrupted by the runaway popularity of YouTube as the lines between “TV quality and digital creator quality” continue to blur, according to the exec.
“We see lots of creators in the US spending a lot of money on their episodes and it’s almost indistinguishable at a certain point,” Goldenberg adds, while discussing the wave of unscripted formats inspired by traditional TV hits such as Survivor.
This chimes with the announcements that came out of YouTube’s recent #MadeOnYouTube event, where it unveiled a suite of products and features that highlight its keenness to be the first thing people see when they switch on their TV.
New products include artificial intelligencepowered automatic dubbing, which Goldenberg believes will help distributors to “export” their content internationally at a fraction of the cost it would have been previously.
Rather than upload several versions of the same video to YouTube in di erent languages, content made in one language, such as English, can now automatically be heard in other languages, like Turkish or Spanish.
YouTube’s head of TV partnerships Fede Goldenberg reveals what producers, distributors and broadcasters need to know if they really want to succeed on the ever-growing pla orm.
By Nico Franks
viewers to other platforms, which could be subscription. Meanwhile, as more and more of us watch YouTube on our smart TVs, channel owners can now organise their content into seasons and episodes, as it would be presented on a SVoD service like Netflix.
During our conversation, Goldenberg mentioned “funnelling awareness” in relation to doing away with exclusivity, where a show’s presence on one platform, which could be ad-supported, drives
“ It’s about authenticity and people enjoying watching content where the people on the screen are their authentic selves, whether it’s an artist, a creator or a TV host. What drives audiences on YouTube and how you develop fan bases is with authenticity.
Fede Goldenberg
YouTube
Michelle Khare’s Challenge Accepted was used at the event as an example of a YouTube show that could seamlessly transfer to ‘TV.’
This comes after YouTube became the first streaming platform ever to exceed 10% of total TV usage, according to US figures reported by Nielsen in July.
Having previously been viewed by the traditional TV industry simply as a promotional tool, YouTube is now being used by media companies in a
Natalie
YouTuber
Lynn’s channel (inset) and Disney’s partnership with Hot Ones
variety of ways to engage e ectively with audiences online, Goldenberg points out.
YouTube is still generally thought of as a marketing platform, as shown by Disney recently partnering with internet phenomenon Hot Ones to celebrate 90 years of Donald Duck with a special episode of the YouTube celebrity chatshow. However, the Mouse House is also making full episodes of library content available for free online, including National Geographic programming, while taking advantage of the addictiveness of YouTube Shorts.
“Nat Geo is a very prestigious documentary channel. But the way they use YouTube is very similar to how you see creators using YouTube: they upload shorts to reach broader audiences and upload full-length episodes, old and new,” says Goldenberg.
YouTube may have once had a reputation for shortform content, but that was many moons ago. People are now accustomed to watching longer and longer videos, with the algorithm looking favourably upon channel owners uploading longer videos – which mean more ads, after all.
“Nat Geo takes it a step further with mega compilation episodes, so a four-hour-and-40-minute compilation of The Story of Us with Morgan Freeman. They call it a ‘mega episode,’” says Goldenberg.
Meanwhile, YouTube has been billed as the new home of “independent TV,” creating and sustaining an entire ecosystem of video content separate to what is being created by US studios, whose power continues to wane.
Moreover, according to Rolling Stone, industry experts are seeing unedited content outperform well-edited videos all over Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. This doesn’t necessarily bode well for the millions of hours of repackaged, heavily edited TV content currently being eyed for monetisation online, but it does highlight how YouTube could impact the kind of content we see on TV, as the new form influences the old and vice versa.
But rather than the word ‘unedited,’ Goldenberg prefers to use a di erent term to describe the kind of videos that lend themselves to making money on YouTube. “It’s about authenticity and people enjoying watching content where the people on the screen are their authentic selves, whether it’s an artist, a creator or a TV host. What drives audiences on YouTube and how you develop fan bases is with authenticity,” the exec says.
Another example Goldenberg uses to illustrate how traditional media companies can grow their audience on YouTube is the Brazilian version of business reality series Shark Tank, after Sony Channel published a special ‘creators’ version of the show on YouTube featuring a panel of influencers. “I love that example because it shows the power of creators and TV talent combined. YouTube and TV work well and work better together,” he says.
Goldenberg encourages TV companies to take advantage of the di erent formats YouTube o ers, from uploading clips of shows on Shorts for mobile to following Nat Geo’s lead and creating superlongform compilations for people to watch on TV, alongside experimenting with 24/7 live streams and video podcasts.
“Participate in the ecosystem, follow the best practices and understand the data and the trends for your audience. Once you’re doing that and you’re getting the views and the audience, the money flows. That is true for artists and music companies as much as it is for creators and media companies,” he advises.
YouTube claims to have returned US$70bn to creators, artists and partners in the past three years via its revenue-share model. One of the biggest beneficiaries of this has been Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast, who knows more about how to succeed on YouTube than anyone.
Donaldson is well aware of how important the right thumbnail and video title is to a video’s success, having written in the alleged internal onboarding document for his production company, which leaked online in September, that the more “extreme” a title “the better.”
It’s revelations like these that mean public service broadcasters continue to wrestle with the extent to which they should engage with the platform.
In September, Goldenberg met with more than
30 executives from various European pubcasters eager to find out how they could improve their YouTube reach, as part of the UCLA Anderson School of Management and European Broadcasting Union’s executive programme.
“Public service broadcasters have a lot of other priorities, but they can’t ignore where the audience is consuming their content and similar content to theirs,” says Goldenberg.
For Goldenberg, YouTube can be additive to the other ways IP owners distribute their content in a digital world, with the platform providing “an additional window of opportunity” for them to reach and engage with fans. The exec also emphasises “the beauty” of a service like YouTube, given it covers “the full gamut of human expression in video form.”
Having previously been constricted by borders, pubcasters around the world can now lean into the two billion users who come to YouTube every month and use “the power of the algorithm” to put their content in front of new potential viewers.
“If someone likes DIY, then they may also enjoy another DIY clip, and it might be a clip from the BBC. There’s a lot of power in the threedimensional ecosystem that YouTube has, where audiences move from certain content to other content they might like.”
Indeed, along with Twitch, YouTube is one of the most powerful video platforms the world has ever seen, in terms of its ability to foster a direct connection between viewer and creator.
Goldenberg describes the potential of a successful YouTube presence as being like a “flywheel” for a brand. Gradually, broadcasters are taking note.
Channel 4 in the UK, for example, is diving headfirst into digital with its Channel 4.0 brand on YouTube, where it is launching formats and breaking new talent – with promising results. Goldenberg is eager to see what embracing the platform could do for more broadcasters.
“Television networks have traditionally thought about their programming schedule as a linear thing, where programme A goes to programme B. But on YouTube it’s much more three-dimensional, and for me, that is what’s exciting and fascinating.”
Artificial intelligence start-ups are willing to pay substantial sums for film and television IP, but what are the factors library owners should consider before taking up a potential ‘once-in-ageneration’ opportunity?
By Jordan Pinto & Jonathan Webdale
year. At the heart of both the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) disputes were concerns over how studios (represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers) might use AI to cut costs, freeze artists out of the creative process or squeeze further profits from work already done without offering additional compensation.
And lo, less than 12 months later, here was Lionsgate heralding an alliance with a company that, together with fellow purveyors Stability AI and Midjourney, remains subject to a class action lawsuit from a group of artists alleging copyright infringement.
“Letting the fox into the hen house,” was how one Tinseltown agent, who spoke to C21 on condition of anonymity, described the deal. “OK, great, you’re going to use AI to make production better. But as an agent, my first question is how is that helping my client? Are my clients going to get paid more money? Are you going to pass those costs on to us? None of the creatives I talk to are sure how it works yet, and most of the talent community are afraid of AI replacing them.”
WThe Hunger Games maker Lionsgate unveiled a “first-of-its-kind partnership” with New York-headquartered artificial intelligence (AI) start-up Runway, neither was likely expecting the backlash that followed. But given we’re in an age of social media public flaming, surely some was anticipated considering the sensitivity of the topic?
“I wonder how the directors and actors of their films feel about having their work fed into the AI to make a proprietary model?”
Reid Southern, a concept artist on the original Hunger Games the first step in trying to replace artists and filmmakers.”
“Our words, performances and direction are merely to feed the machine until we’re no longer needed,” wrote actor, director and
Neither Lionsgate nor Runway would comment for this article beyond the joint statement issued at the time in which Lionsgate vice chair Michael Burns described the tech firm as “a visionary, best-in-class partner who will help us utilise AI to develop cutting-edge, capital-efficient content creation opportunities.”
“Several of our filmmakers are already excited about its potential applications to their pre-production and post-production process. We view AI as a great tool for augmenting, enhancing and supplementing our current operations,” added Burns.
“As we continue our work with Lionsgate and other studios, we’re also considering ways to license or otherwise offer these models as templates that can be made available to individual creators interested in building and training their own proprietary models,” said Runway.
The timing of the announcement didn’t help, coming as it did just shy of the anniversary of the end of the US writers’ strike, which, together with the actors’ action, brought Hollywood to a halt for six months last
There are a couple of crucial points to note here: Runway’s focus is on building ‘proprietary models,’ meaning the firm can’t, in principle, use Lionsgate’s IP or that of any other partner for its own purposes. It cannot produce generative AI (GAI) content of its own – based on, for example, the John Wick franchise – but internally, Lionsgate could do so in areas such as storyboarding or the design and creation of special effects. Critically, the terms of the SAG-AFTRA agreement reached last November would preclude it from replicating star Keanu Reeves, or indeed any other actor members.
“We are aware of the Lionsgate/Runway AI arrangement. We will ensure that the use of GAI in that arrangement, as it relates to the work of our covered performers,
Michael Burns
John Wick, and Mad Men
movie, posted on X. “This is we’re no longer needed,” wrote actor, director and writer Alexander Chard.
Lionsgate’s action movie franchise John Wick
James Cameron’s Terminator
complies with SAG-AFTRA terms and existing law,” Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG-AFTRA’s national executive director and chief negotiator, told C21.
Also, Runway says it is working with other studios, and in the fast-developing field of AI it is by no means alone. Meta, Google and Microsoft – backer of ChatGPT and Sora creator OpenAI – are all said to be in talks with Hollywood, eager to license vast treasure troves of film and TV to help train their respective AI systems. And, reputedly, willing to pay large amounts for the privilege.
Steve Hulford is co-founder and CEO of Underknown, a Toronto-based digital media company that owns and operates popular YouTube channels including What If, Aperture, How to Survive and Animalogic, the latter a nature and wildlife outlet acquired this year from Blue Ant Media.
The serial entrepreneur recently spied a new business opportunity after online tech journal 404 Media reported possessing a leaked document detailing how Runway had trained its text-to-video tools on a string of YouTube channels run by the likes of Disney, Netflix and National Geographic, with Underknown’s own Animalogic also on the list of sources.
sets to feed it, but Underknown’s Hulford is trying to act as an intermediary, teaming up with smaller library owners to aggregate programme packages of sufficient scale to be of interest, not only to the big-name AI players but a host of other start-ups too.
“It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity where you’ve got these AI models that are hungry for content,” he says. “We’re working with a partner in the US to take advantage of this, to round up hundreds of thousands of hours of content, and it could be substantial sums of money for television production companies.”
How much exactly?
“Suffice to say, someone with 3,000 hours could make between £300,000 [US$400,000] and £600,000 in 2025. It’s a new opportunity so the range is highly variable. The needs of the AI engines are different as well. We have around 40-plus targets for this content,” says Hulford
“ It’s a once-ina-generation opportunity where you’ve got these AI models that are hungry for content.
“Runway scraped thousands of YouTube channels; that’s where its learning came from. How do we know this? 404 Media wrote an article about this not even a month or two ago,” says Hulford. “YouTube has since launched a feature where we can opt out of being scraped, which Underknown has chosen to do.”
He is not the only operative emerging in this space. Mariano Rosón, CEO of US Hispanic production company Nitro Group, is in the market for libraries of TV shows, movies and podcasts that can then be licensed to AI companies trying to develop things like virtual psychologists or virtual language teachers.
ago,” says Hulford. “YouTube has since launched a feature
But what this revelation prompted him to explore was not the possibility of a lawsuit, rather the licensing opportunities that exist among AI protagonists prepared to play by the rules.
pact between Google and Reddit hands the
In the publishing sector, OpenAI has already struck licensing deals with the likes of Associated Press, Axel Springer, the Financial Times and News Corp – the latter worth US$250m over the next five years, according to The Wall Street Journal – while a pact between Google and Reddit hands the latter US$60m a year, says Reuters.
likewise Google with Gemini, but it is the
These arrangements relate to text, so OpenAI uses them to train ChatGPT, and likewise Google with Gemini, but it is the former’s text-to-video AI tool Sora, unveiled to shock and awe in February, that stands to have the greatest impact on the film and TV industries. But arguably, it first needs the latter’s assets to achieve its full potential.
Bloomberg reported earlier this year that Meta, Google, Microsoft and the like are willing to pay “tens of millions of dollars” to Hollywood studios for the right to ingest their content.
Lionsgate has a catalogue of more than 20,000 film and TV titles – small in comparison to majors Warner Bros Discovery (200,000-plus hours), Paramount (140,000plus), NBCUniversal (110,000-plus) and Disney (100,000-plus), none of which were willing to comment for this story. By comparison, in Europe, Banijay claims a portfolio of some 190,000 hours, whereas ITV Studios cites 90,000 and BBC Studios and Fremantle both boast upwards of 40,000. These companies, too, either declined to give interviews or did not respond to requests for them.
AI is a beast that requires sizeable data
“The tech companies foresee that not far in the future there will be legislation making it very simple for a company to claim somebody is using their rights and get a subpoena to search all their servers,” says Rosón. “A little further ahead, that will be automatic. In the same way we can find if somebody is using our content online, this will happen with servers
Steve Hulford Underknown
to claim somebody is using their rights and get a subpoena to search all their servers,” says Rosón. “A little further
Mariano Rosón
Federation Studios’ drama series Bardot
and everything will be discovered. So acquiring content under legal terms is the most sensible way to do it.”
Six months after Google announced its US$1.65bn acquisition of YouTube in October 2006, Viacom sued the online video-sharing start-up for US$1bn, alleging massive copyright infringement. In response, Google introduced YouTube Content ID to automatically detect infringements in user-uploaded videos. Viacom’s lawsuit rumbled on for seven years, during which Content ID evolved and media companies became more comfortable with the platform.
“It’s worth thinking about how YouTube, Napster and other disruptors worked. They knew they were breaching copyright and people didn’t quite know how to deal with it. Is it worth me suing someone for a tiny little clip that just appeared on their website?” reflects one prominent UK TV exec who preferred not to be named.
“There is an old adage that copyright is technology’s child and whenever there’s a technological leap, there’s always a lag whilst governments and laws catch up and then we find a new normal. The AI companies are not going to stop. They are disruptors backed by the disruptors from 10, 20 years ago. We need to find our way through it, but obviously, the one thing they really need to truly fine-tune their models is our content, so we hold the power, to a degree.”
The exec is referring to the likes of Stability AI, the UK-headquartered startup behind GAI tool Stable Diffusion that appeared on the brink of bankruptcy earlier this year but was rescued in June by investors including former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and notorious Napster founder Sean Parker. The latter, now executive chairman, even welcomed James Cameron to the company’s board in September, despite the Titanic and Avatar director having once warned his 1984 hit Terminator was a cautionary tale about the dangers AI presents to humanity.
“savvy decision.” She says: “From a legal and practical perspective, it’s a question of Lionsgate being the first to put their hand up and say, ‘Look, we have to get out ahead of this.’”
She acknowledges it is a sensitive topic, especially among creatives concerned for their jobs. But she sees the deal as an attempt to give those with whom the studio works the AI tools they can use to advance their craft using legally cleared source material rather than undermine them, and “reduce or remove the risk of infringement claims resulting from it.”
Many questions remain, of course, not least the extent to which, despite WGA and SAG-AFTRA ‘guardrails’ and emerging legislation in the US, Europe and elsewhere, some countries and companies may adopt a more relaxed attitude to IP. A number of Sora rivals have sprung up in China, notably ByteDance’s Jimeng AI, Shengshu AI’s Vidu and Kuaishou Technology’s Kling AI.
“ It’s the era of the library. Your library can help you finance future development, so we need to be super cautious about how we exploit that, take care of it and get the best out of the IP for the next 30 years.
Guillaume Pommier Federation Studios
“The YouTube/Content ID analogy is a good one,” says Gary Woolf, executive VP of strategic development at All3Media International, the distribution arm of Redbird IMI-owned UK production group All3Media, which holds a catalogue of over 30,000 hours.
“We can certainly see that there are monetisation opportunities in this space. We’re at an early stage in a handful of conversations and what’s really important to us, in terms of representing our producers and rights holders, is that the content going into these training models is ethically sourced – essentially, licensed. As to what the terms are, we’re just in the middle of unpicking that.”
“These studios and IP owners have so much content they own the rights to, it does make sense to try to encourage people to dip into that rather than into unlicensed content,” says Caitlin McGivern, a senior associate at UK law firm Harbottle & Lewis.
For McGivern, the Lionsgate/Runway deal was a
“If we were to be approached by someone who’s willing to license our content, we would be super careful about where the company is based and what the interests of its shareholders are,” says Guillaume Pommier, co-head of distribution at Federation Studios, producer of biographical drama series Bardot
Not only that, but the exec is also wary about the longevity of AI start-ups, given the space is so nascent and hyped.
“None of these AI companies are profitable right now, so it’s kind of a bubble,” he says.
“OpenAI is worth billions (US$157bn to be precise after closing a new US$6.6bn round of funding), but how long will they last and what happens if you give them exclusivity but they close?”
Pommier also has environmental concerns, given the incredible energy demands of AI data centres. Microsoft, for example, recently struck a deal to help restart the Three Mile Island nuclear plant – scene of the US’s worst nuclear accident in 1979 – for such purposes.
The immediate issue for a lot of TV companies in 2024, however, is that their production income has tanked.
“Since the peak TV era, it’s been very hard for everyone to finance shows,” Pommier continues. “But in the meantime, it’s the era of the library. Your library can help you finance future development, so we need to be super cautious about how we exploit that, take care of it and get the best out of the IP for the next 30 years.”
Law firm Harbottle & Lewis’s Caitlin McGivern and Gary Woolf of All3Media International
A sample of Sora’s AI-generated video
Pubcasters in peril
‘FThe
role of public service broadcasters has never been more important, but the emergence of right-wing governments across Europe puts their independence and survival under unprecedented threat. By Nico Franks
ar-right parties are on the rise across Europe.’ No, not the first line of a plot summary for a historical drama set in the 1930s, but the headline of a BBC News article published last year against the backdrop of a resurgence in extremist politics in Europe.
One year on and the far right has surged in the European Parliament elections, while Austria’s Freedom Party, founded by former Nazis in the 1950s, is the latest in a wave of ‘new populist’ parties to gain power in the north, south, east and west of Europe.
Countries including Italy, Finland, Hungary, Croatia, Greece, Sweden and Slovakia have swerved to the right in recent years, while right-wing parties tapping into and enflaming
anti-establishment sentiment and nationalistic values among voters have made gains in the Netherlands, Germany, Spain and Belgium in 2024. European public service broadcasters (PSBs) find themselves at the centre of the turmoil and there’s no doubt an increasing number of European governments see public media as too liberal or a barrier to their messaging, resulting in e orts to reduce their funding or influence their output.
In France, a traditionally leftleaning media sector seemed set for drastic change under Marine Le Pen’s National Rally but breathed a sigh of relief after a left-wing coalition won the most parliamentary seats in the country’s snap parliamentary election over the summer.
The far-right National Rally party had threatened to privatise pubcaster France Télévisions (FTV) if it had won a majority – a move that would have threatened hundreds of thousands of jobs, with gargantuan repercussions for the European PSB landscape, given FTV’s support for genres such as factual, drama and kids and family.
Le Pen had looked on course for victory after the first round of voting, when her party secured the biggest share of the vote. However, tactical voting in the second round saw the New Popular Front, a hastily arranged coalition of left-wing parties, win the most parliamentary seats of any political bloc, but not enough for an overall majority.
Since then, President Emmanuel Macron has installed the rightleaning Michel Barnier as prime minister in September, with Barnier’s selection of a staunchly conservative cabinet highlighting a sharp turn to the right.
Things look a little di erent in the UK, where, after over a decade of meddling from the Conservative Party, the BBC has been granted a respite following the left-of-centre Labour Party’s return to government after a 14-year absence under premier Sir Keir Starmer.
Starmer has ruled out changes to how the BBC is funded until at least 2027 and backed the licence fee model that had come under threat from a revolving door of hostile Tory culture secretaries.
Nevertheless, BBC director
Above: UK PSBs joined forces to launch streamer Freely. Right: France Télévisions came under threat from the far-right National Rally party
Lisa Nandy, UK culture secretary
I want to bring to an end this constant political interference in the media – we’ve seen far too much of that in recent years. It’s not the job of politicians or the government to dictate what can or cannot be said. The accusations against our institutions have got to stop. The relationship between the media and politicians is often very uncomfortable, and so it should be, because they hold us to account. Rest assured, there’ll be a very different approach from this government.
Perrine Gauthier, producer and founder, La Cabane Productions, France
Thanks to an unprecedented coalition and to the mobilisation of civil society, the extreme right did not get a majority in parliament. But the last few weeks have also been a brutal reminder that nothing should be taken for granted. Not our rights and freedoms. Not democratic principles. Not pluralism. Not the media landscape. Not freedom of the press. Not public broadcasting. Not the funding of culture and associations. Not the artists’ social status. Not this victory. The weeks, months and years to come will be decisive in preserving all of this.
Bakel Walden, outgoing director of development, SRG SSR
The licence fee is our main income and it’s under pressure. There’s going to be another referendum that is calling for our budget to be halved. We will probably see a vote in the next two years. We are confident it will once again be rejected, but it puts a lot of pressure on the teams. Either way the licence fee will be
general Tim Davie is aware the pubcaster must look at how it can reform its funding model to secure the long-term future of the institution – a move that could see wealthier people pay more for the licence fee in a radical overhaul of the payment system.
Meanwhile, the BBC and its fellow UK PSBs have teamed up to launch Freely, a streaming service providing live TV over the internet that media commentator Evan Shapiro has claimed could help save the country’s pubcasting sector.
In Switzerland, a campaign to halve pubcaster SRG SSR’s licence fee is being backed by political parties including the populist Swiss People’s Party, while a rival cross-party group called Pro Media Diversity has called for SRG SSR’s funding to be maintained.
Dubbed the ‘200 francs should be enough’ referendum, it comes after Swiss voters overwhelmingly rejected the opportunity to scrap the licence fee entirely in 2018, when 71% of the nearly three million voters were against the abolition of radio and TV fees.
Meanwhile, in Slovakia, the government has come under fire from European media freedom groups
cut. This is clear, the government has decided. We’ll probably see 15-18% less income in the next five years. That’s quite significant.
Dr Patrick Hörl, MD, Autentic
Roughly 50% of all investment in factual content in Europe is actually coughed up by the public broadcasters, so we had better watch very carefully what happens with them. They are under enormous pressure for various reasons, including political.
Catherine Tait, outgoing president and CEO, CBC/ Radio-Canada
I spend a lot of time talking to Canadians about why public broadcasting matters more than ever. I’m not sure it’s landed, and that is a regret – that I have not been successful at a call to action to activate Canadians. Perhaps my successor and others I leave behind will be more successful in communicating the urgency. But the public broadcaster in this country is under existential threat, and it’s not just in Canada.
Andrea Campbell, communications manager, EBU When you return to your countries, I would like you to watch your public service media news and assess it for yourself. Do you trust what is being said? Is it independent, balanced and informative? If not, it is time to start asking questions and using Council of Europe recommendations to support these enquiries. We are beyond a time where we can just sit and watch. We need action to ensure that there is media freedom and respect for journalist safety for the generations to come.
since replacing pubcaster Radio & Television of Slovakia (RTVS) with STVR. In August, pubcaster Česká Televize in the neighbouring Czech Republic distanced itself from STVR, citing its connections with Slovakia’s pro-Russian governing party Direction: Social Democracy.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU)’s director general, Noel Curran, described the move as a “thinly veiled attempt” by Slovakia’s prime minister, Robert Fico, to exert state control over public broadcasting.
In September, the EBU urged EU
policymakers to prioritise media in the new legislative term. It stressed the need to safeguard Europe’s media sector through commitment to the rule of law, ensuring the prominence of general interest media, enforcement of legislation around big tech and a strategy for artificial intelligence within the sector.
But the existential threat facing PSBs is not restricted to Europe. In Canada, Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party remains in power but the opposition Conservative Party has gathered momentum over the past year, with leader Pierre Poilievre making regular comments about plans to defund the CBC were he to become prime minister.
Catherine Tait, whose tenure as CBC/Radio-Canada president and CEO ends in early January 2025, recently told C21’s Content Canada event she believes public broadcasting across the globe is in a “very vulnerable situation.”
Tait’s warning comes as calls grow for collective action to ensure PSBs, and an entire ecosystem of independent producers, can continue to reliably inform, educate and entertain all audiences, ultimately empowering and strengthening democracies worldwide.
Slovakia’s prime minister Robert Fico
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Magic touchpoints
As BBC Studios’ activities on YouTube and TikTok grow, the commercial arm of the BBC is seeking more IP that might end up living everywhere but on a traditional TV channel.
By Nico Franks
BBC Studios (BBCS) is a TV leviathan. With in-house production units focusing on factual, scripted, global entertainment and kids and family, it creates shows for buyers around the world, including Amazon, Apple TV+, Disney+, France Télévisions, Netflix, NHK, Nine Australia, PBS, NBC Universal, Warner Bros Discovery and ZDF.
It also owns a huge portfolio of production companies around the world, include Baby Reindeer producer Clerkenwell Films, while it has invested in the likes of Turbine Studios (Small Axe) and Various Artists Ltd (I May Destroy You).
But as independent production in key markets such as the UK contracts due to shifting audience habits and shrinking broadcaster budgets, BBCS is setting its sights on social media and brand-funded content, as well as podcasts. This is content that may never grace a traditional TV channel in the same way as existing BBCS megabrands.
Jasmine Dawson, BBCS’s senior VP of digital, emphasises the importance of “multi-touchpoint brands” within the company’s portfolio as well as its need to put creators at the heart of what it does to stay relevant.
“We should be building around creators; they are the new IP and the new storytellers,” says Dawson, who joined BBCS in 2018 from MediaCom.
Having delivered 6.9 billion social video views in 2023, it specialises in connecting digital audiences through social-first content, operating 90-plus channels across YouTube, Snap, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram, as well as Gen Z-aimed online comedy channel Funny Parts.
Meanwhile, the TalentWorks team, led by head of development Helen O’Donnell (see page 183), helps to identify, develop and nurture emerging new talent within BBCS’s own production teams or indies in which it has invested, while growing new IP.
with the word ‘commissioner’ in them, but execs are given commissioning budgets and have relevance key performance indicators (KPIs) and revenue KPIs that they need to fulfil.
Dawson highlights this as an example of just how different the worlds of TV and digital are, with the latter being a place where each exec is a commissioner, marketeer and researcher rolled into one, and probably a few other things to boot.
It’s similar to how online talent, perhaps unlike some of those working in TV, doesn’t just read an autocue but is also in charge of writing, performing and distributing content and tweaking it in response to what the algorithm is telling them about when their audiences’ attention drops off.
Key to doing this are initiatives such as BBCS TalentWorks and its Creator in Residence programme, which Dawson describes as places where the old and new media worlds can engage in “mutual learning and value exchange.”
Over the summer, BBCS moved its TalentWorks division into its Global Digital Brands team, previously known as BBCS Social, which curates, commissions and commercialises the digital footprint of BBCS brands such as Bluey, Top Gear, Doctor Who and Planet Earth
But is this new way of working conducive to creating the next, for example, Top Gear – a piece of IP that has run and run for years and been sold around the world for millions of pounds?
“Absolutely. One of my favourite formats is [Amelia Dimoldenberg’s] Chicken Shop Date. It’s funny, irreverent and I can consume multiple ‘dates’ within five minutes on my way home. It’s perfect,” says Dawson.
Within the digital team at BBCS, there are no roles
“They have to be multi-skilled. They need to think not just about ‘I’m a commissioner, so I just need to commission and acquire the content and somebody else will do the rest of it for me,’ they also need to have a good understanding of data. They need to have a good understanding of the landscape; they need to understand marketing,” says Dawson. “It’s a very different world. Gone are the days when you have your agency and your in-house marketing team and all those things. That is not how the digital space works, because a trend happens in a matter of minutes.”
Just as quickly as a trend can appear, a social media platform could disappear due to the unpredictable strategies of social media giants (RIP Vine). As the threat of a ban in the US hangs over Chinese-owned TikTok, where is Dawson focusing BBCS’s digital activities?
“Commercially, YouTube is our biggest priority. The ceiling for YouTube keeps on getting raised in terms of not only the creative opportunity but the financial opportunity,” she says.
“The headline that sticks out for me is that
Perpetual Planet: Heroes of the Ocean
BBCS worked with food brand Hellmann’s on Cook Clever, Waste Less with Prue & Rupy
BBCS Social handles the digital footprint of BBCS brands such as Doctor Who and Bluey (below)
YouTube is the biggest platform in TV. The overall platform experience has completely changed. That is a real opportunity for us. We’re no longer thinking about it as, ‘This is premium content for linear and this is the cut-down compilation for YouTube.’ We’re thinking about longform, 20-minute-plus content on digital.”
For Dawson, TikTok is “a really important strategic partner” for BBCS on the marketing side that has grown incredibly fast, but it is not yet a platform on which to monetise original content in the same way YouTube is. “We do believe the commercial opportunity will come in time,” she adds.
And if it’s banned in the US? “We will always work with like-minded partners that support the same values we do. If that changes, we have to review the relationship. We’re always mindful of our audiences and where they are, as well as the fact we have to have trust in the leadership of the platform.”
As well as working with BBCS-owned prodcos such as Baby Cow Productions, Dawson’s digital team looks to support them by marketing their shows on various digital channels as well as placing promising online talent within the prodcos as part of its Creator in Residence initiative.
So powerful and advanced are the algorithms used by platforms such as YouTube and TikTok, they can tailor a user’s viewing experience to an extremely specific degree. How does BBCS ensure its content is what’s being put in front of the average viewer and not something created on an artificial intelligence-powered production line?
“You’re no longer in a space where your competitors are [just the] studios – you’re in a space where everyone’s a competitor. You have to learn from those people who have earned their flying hours in their bedroom, because they’re going to know far more about TikTok than someone like me,” says Dawson.
Unlike the BBC, BBCS can work directly with
“Having grown this business from quite small, humble beginnings to a profitable business that’s generating multiple millions, our content must be meaningful to a vast global audience and is driving advertiser demand. That is why it’s so successful,” says Dawson.
However, the exec also emphasises how the world of social video can be “really humbling” – perhaps one reason TV execs have felt intimidated by talent who have been able to grow an audience with no need of a leg up from an old-school gatekeeper.
brands. But we are careful about who we work with, from both a creator and brand perspective,” says Dawson.
A jewel in the crown of BBCS is Bluey, a show that has been described as not just the best children’s show on TV but the best show full stop. As well as iPlayer, it is also available across what Dawson would call a variety of “touchpoints,” most notably
“Commercially, YouTube is our biggest priority. The ceiling for YouTube keeps on getting raised in terms of not only the creative opportunity but the financial opportunity.
Jasmine Dawson BBCS
brands and advertisers to fund content, with examples including Game & Glory, in partnership with esports company ESL; Channel 4 (C4) series The Great Home Transformation for IKEA; Cook Clever, Waste Less with Prue & Rupy for Hellmann’s and C4; and Perpetual Planet: Heroes of the Ocean for Rolex and Nat Geo.
“We are commercially focused and we are thinking about branded content. We believe we can offer creators a tried-and-trusted way of working with
YouTube and Disney+. But that cross-platform distribution strategy is not always the easiest to navigate for a distributor.
“It shouldn’t matter what screen [a show’s on]. Ultimately, you should be thinking about attention and attribution and you capture attention through being the most relevant that you can on any screen,” she says.
“There is always going to be a debate internally as to how we protect the content pipeline and our commercial pipeline. But that’s the exciting thing for me – being embedded in such an amazing institution like the BBC and being part of that push to bring digital into the forefront.”
Could online gaming platform Roblox, which the BBC has used to bring the down the average age of the audience of shows such as Glow Up on BBC Three, be the next major platform the TV industry needs to be aware of as a place to expose its IP?
Dawson believes the opportunities for IP owners on platforms such as Roblox are “really interesting,” particularly around educational content. Experimenting with Roblox is just one example of how BBCS now works on “multi-touchpoint brands that may never touch TV,” says Dawson, with a combination of consumer products, live events, visualised podcasts and YouTube now more than enough to command huge fan engagement.
Clearly, the revolution at BBCS is not necessarily being televised.
Bluey
Warner media
The former head of youth and digital at Channel 4 is taking up a new role at BBC Studios, having gained invaluable experience specialising in breaking new formats and partnering with brands online.
By Nico Franks
Karl Warner is no stranger to a digital-first commission, having spent the past three years as head of youth and digital at Channel 4 (C4) as it began ramping up its ambitions to become the world’s first digital-first public service streamer by 2030, led by Channel 4.0.
Warner, who joined C4 in 2018 as controller of youth-skewing brand E4, left the UK commercial public service broadcaster in May and is now preparing to take up a new role spearheading a fledgling UK-based creative unit for BBC Studios (BBCS)’s global entertainment business.
Warner’s arrival at BBCS in November marks his return to the pubcaster, where he spent six years after becoming its youngest ever commissioning editor, aged 26, in 2007.
As executive VP of UK entertainment and digital development at BBCS, Warner’s new team will be tasked with creating IP and formats for the BBC as well as other UK and global platforms.
His unit will also partner with BBCS global entertainment teams around the world, particularly in the US, to reimagine international ideas for the UK market that will be produced by the new entertainment production business led by Suzy Lamb, MD for UK entertainment. He will report to global entertainment MD Matt Forde. Speaking before the late-September announcement confirming his move to BBCS, Warner discussed the importance of production companies
pursuing a digital-first strategy to “futureproof” their business on social platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram with branded entertainment.
“It’s a space that all companies should be looking at given the huge growth in the area,” said Warner, pointing to the abundance of new talent, formats and distribution deals being done. “It’s a must for all producers to really understand it, because it’s where the audience is moving.”
Warner compares it to the situation he found himself in during the mid2010s, when he ran the Sony Pictures Entertainment-backed production company Electric Ray. Having initially focused on primetime entertainment, the company diversified into more lowcost daytime programming.
His arrival at BBCS comes as the scripted and unscripted giant uses its huge scale, catalogue of IP and talent relationships to grow its digital footprint (see pages 29 and 183). Warner believes digital platforms are “brilliant” places to incubate formats and gain proof of concept.
Warner points to Blue Therapy, a couples counselling show that began on YouTube before migrating to E4 and becoming one of its most popular series. The UK show, produced by Luti Media, has since been sold to buyers including BET+ in the US by All3Media International, which also handles format rights.
However, Warner admits it remains
“
Digital is a really exciting space for producers or storytellers to explore, not just as a new revenue stream but as a way to access and develop new talent, new formats and to grow an audience.
Karl Warner
hard to monetise formats that have originated online compared with the heyday of territory-by-territory sales.
“The rights position isn’t always as favourable as when you go directly to traditional linear or VoD-based commissioning teams,” said Warner.
“It’s a very different marketplace to 10, 20 or 30 years ago when lots of the big indies we know today emerged. Then those gun-for-hire models worked really well for production
companies, particularly when Netflix first turned up and was paying a premium for rights.
“You’d sacrifice some of the distribution potential of a format knowing you got an upfront fee. That isn’t necessarily the case so much now and it’s getting tighter and tighter and it’s more competitive than ever.
“I still think digital is a really exciting space for producers or storytellers to explore, not just as a new revenue stream but as a way to access and develop new talent, new formats and to grow an audience. Owning an audience is more valuable in some ways then owning a format.
“The return on investment on the commissioning side is to grow an audience that is super engaged and young that you can then leverage with brands and sponsors longer term. That’s where it makes sense.”
Meanwhile, pitfalls remain in migrating a format from digital to linear and assuming the online audience will follow.
“We’ve seen examples in the past where people have moved creators with big audiences on YouTube across to linear and it’s just not worked. It’s felt like that sort of production filter that’s put on the content, inadvertently, has created some sort of barrier between the show and the audience,” said Warner.
“But with Blue Therapy, the team did a brilliant job transferring the audience and maintaining the authentic tone and feel it had when it was a YouTubefirst series. You have to be very respectful of the audience a show has established.”
Warner admits the model remains “messy.” But producers, from the smallest indies to his future employer, can’t afford to ignore the opportunities in digital.
Hidden Garden
Quality counts
Many younger people are not only leaving behind linear TV but also bypassing SVoD platforms in favour of the likes of YouTube and TikTok. How does that factor into your thinking?
Within our own ecosystem, the di erence between HBO linear and somebody watching an HBO show on Max, that’s about a 20-year age di erence. In terms of the people going to YouTube, there’s always going to be competition for people’s attention. And video games are obviously a big part of that. So the best thing you can do is work with people who have something to say, who you trust, who are good writers, and just keep putting out interesting stories. Don’t overthink it too much, because a good show is a good show is a good show.
Shows like House of the Dragon
The Last of Us have substantial budgets, but budgets are tightening across the industry. How is that a ecting your commissioning?
Some other IP-based shows on other platforms – I won’t say which – have higher budgets. Both the Dragon and The Last of Us started out under US$20m [per episode] and some other big genre shows are US$25m to US$30m right out of the gate. So we were a bit under that.
“ The best thing you can do is work with people who have something to say, who you trust, who are good writers, and just keep putting out interesting stories. Don’t overthink it too much, because a good show is a good show is a good show.
Casey Bloys
HBO & Max
brain surgery, it’s not a new idea, but I think some people are re-learning it.
You have previously spoken about subscription services needing to find new ways to make money outside of fees. Where are you with that at the moment?
This is the windowing conversation. Syndication, selling a show outside of your platform, was something HBO had done for decades. Syndicating to basic cable in the case of The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Band of Brothers, Entourage, Sex & the City, all were sold to basic cable. And obviously they’re not as popular anymore, but DVDs were another way to do that.
One of the things about television and movies that has always been true, and it’s certainly been true for us, is you can only spend
in relation to how well something does. So if we’re spending, say, US$20m on a new show, we obviously have expectations for how it’s going to perform. And House of the Dragon has more than delivered on that promise. It is a lot of money, but we’re getting a return on it creatively on screen and in terms of the audience it brings in.
So that has typically been the business model for television – you produce something at a certain level and there are multiple ways to make money from it. One of the things about streaming was the idea that you would make things and they would just sit in your library and you would never go through those windows. That notion is being challenged to some extent, and it’s a little bit like going back into the history of television. In the last 10 years, it’s unusual, but in the history of television, it’s really not. So the idea of selling shows that are 10, 15 years old – syndicating them, to use an older word – is not that unusual.
that promise. It is a lot of brings in.
How has the international roll-out of Max a ected your commissioning? Initially, there was a lot of talk about focusing on local content.
The lesson everybody is learning is you have to spend in relation to how well something performs. It’s not
Well, it will always be a combination [of local and international programming]. One of the benefits of HBO and Max programming and being within Warner Brothers is we have access to a lot of IP. So there are shows on HBO like House of the Dragon, The Last of Us, Game of Thrones or The Penguin, with Colin Farrell, which is based on the DC character from The Batman. We’ve got a Dune prequel series.
Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and content at streamer Max, discusses competing with YouTube and TikTok and how Max’s local commissioning strategy is changing. By John Winfield
and have substantial House of
The Batman spin-off
The Penguin
Those tentpole series tend to do well internationally. They tend to travel to Latin America, Europe, Asia and they do well around the globe. So the fortunate part about our commissioning in the US is those types of shows do well domestically and they do well internationally. The question then, in di erent regions, is what do you put around those shows?
For local people, local original programming is always going to be almost as important as the big tentpole shows. Whether that is dramas, comedies or documentaries depends on the country, the region and where they want to invest their resources. But the tentpole line-up is a good thing for them to build around.
Many producers have said that it’s becoming harder to land coproductions with the US these days. Why is that?
We will look back and say we probably maxed out at 600 scripted shows [per year, the figure hit during ‘peak TV’ in 2022] in the US. Most people would agree that’s probably too much for any audience in the US to properly absorb and enjoy, and for companies to make any sort of business out of. So just in moving from 600 to wherever we end up, I’m sure it’s not just coproductions [that are a ected]. It’s harder in general as the output lowers.
What are your thoughts on the place of artificial intellgence (AI) in the industry?
The idea that we, as executives, networks or platforms, would go directly to AI and cut out writers or creative people, that has never made sense to me. That’s not really an industry I want to be involved with. You know, where we’re cutting out creativity. That seems nonsensical to me.
If a writer, for some reason, decides for their creative process they want to employ it, that’s up to them. But I’d rather not work in an industry where a platform is going directly to AI and saying, ‘Give me a spy thriller, set in the 1980s, with international appeal.’ That’s a pretty depressing thought. So anything that bypasses writers, directors or actors – to say it would be subpar would be an understatement.
AI is now a large umbrella term. I have seen [instances where] I don’t know if you would call it AI or just advances in technology. For example, with dubbing, where they can not only dub it but dub it to make it look like actors are speaking whatever language [by digitally manipulating mouth movements], in whatever region, that is potentially very interesting. I think right now it’s still too expensive.
The thing that is most troublesome to people is replacing a creative process with it. But if you’re talking about making production easier, in the
“ I’d rather not work in an industry where a pla orm is going directly to AI and saying, ‘Give me a spy thriller, set in the 1980s, with international appeal.’ That’s a pretty depressing thought.
Casey Bloys
HBO & Max
same way we use volume stages to save going on location, then sure.
Is there any sort of content that HBO doesn’t have at the moment that you’re looking for?
I wouldn’t say necessarily for HBO, but one of the things we want to do for Max, and one of the things we have announced, is a procedural [called The Pitt, from ER showrunner John Wells]. We are committed to 15 episodes, and it’s a medical show. The idea is that within each episode there is a beginning, middle and end, but also longer arcs. It’s a little bit of an experiment to see if you go outside of six, eight or 10 episodes, are people going to stick around for longer? And are people still interested in that type of storytelling? I think they are and I’m glad we’re trying it.
There’s understandably a lot of negativity around the state of the industry at present, but what reasons are there to be positive about the TV business?
Even if [the industry] went from 600 shows to, I don’t know, 500 shows, that is still way more than, as an industry, we have ever produced. It’s always going to be painful to pull back on the amount of shows we make. But if you take a longer view, the fact we’re still producing that much content, that many shows, is a good thing.
House of The Dragon
The Last of Us
3 x one hour (3 x 45-minute version also available)
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sales@sphere-abacus.com
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Show stoppers
The return of TV characters from yesteryear, diverse stories from Northern England and docs marking major historical milestones are among the programming trends popping up in shows launching on the international market at Mipcom. By Nico Franks
international
Human vs Hamster (format)
Producer: A Smith & Co
Distributor: Warner Bros International TV
Production
They say: “In this never-before-seen physical competition, extraordinary pet hamsters go toeto-toe with teams of humans in scaled challenges that will test their speed, strength, agility and eating prowess to see which species is superior.” We say: This cheeky format, set to debut on Magnolia Network and Max in the US this fall, aims to tap into the affection that hamsters inspire around the world.
Made in Korea: The K-Pop Experience (6x60’)
Producers: Moon & Back, SM Entertainment
Distributor: ITV Studios
They say: “A world-first entertainment series encapsulating the global phenomenon of K-pop.” We say: Follows a fledgling British boy band as they depart for Korea to attend a K-pop boot camp, learning from the experts who have created the world’s biggest K-pop superstars.
If Pigs Could Talk (1x60’/75’)
Producer: Snowman Productions
Distributor: Seven.One Studios
International
They say: “Exposes the realities of pork production and has the potential to challenge a trillion-dollar industry, asking viewers to rethink their perceptions and ethics regarding animal welfare.”
We say: Using advanced artificial intelligence technology, a group of scientists was able to translate pigs’ grunts, squeals and snorts into human language to understand what pigs say to humans and each other while under stress. Already sold to ARD/NDR (Germany), DR (Denmark), RTS (Switzerland), NRK (Norway) and SVT (Sweden).
The Secret Life of Bees (2x60’)
Producers: Honey Bee, GroupM Motion
Entertainment
Distributor: Orange Smarty
They say: “Naturalist and explorer Steve Backshall reveals the fascinating everyday lives of bees as well as what it takes to be a beekeeper.”
We say: The importance of bees to our existence cannot be overstated and this two-part special highlights how, without bees and other pollinators, our food security would be seriously compromised.
Virdee (6x60’)
Producer: Magical Society
Distributor: Cineflix Rights
They say: “The first mainstream British Asian-led, returning crime series for BBC One, set in the immensely culturally diverse city of Bradford with a fascinating and deeply complex hero at its heart.”
We say: Based on the bestselling Harry Virdee books by AA Dhand, this series follows a cop disowned by his Sikh family for marrying a Muslim woman as he hunts down a serial killer while his personal life descends into chaos.
Suits LA (TBCx60’)
Producers: Hypnotic, Universal Content
Productions
Distributor: NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution
They say: “Ted Black, a former federal prosecutor from New York, has reinvented himself representing the most powerful clients in Los Angeles.”
We say: Buyers will have a hard time fighting off Netflix to get their hands on this NBC spin-off from the legal drama that ran for nine seasons on USA Network between 2011 and 2019 before receiving a huge surge in popularity after being acquired by the global streamer.
Bergerac (6x60’)
Producer: BlackLight TV
Distributor: Banijay Entertainment
They say: “This modern re-imagining honours the detective drama, but with a contemporary twist, as Bergerac is thrown into a knotty, highstakes police investigation and challenged to his very core.”
We say: Bergerac is one of several classic TV characters being rebooted (also see Matlock) and this UKTV series moves away from the story-ofthe-week format of the 1980s BBC original, instead following a single character-driven murder mystery over the course of six episodes
Rise of the Raven (11x60’)
Producers: Twin Media, HG Media, MR Film, Beta Film
Distributor: Beta Film
They say: “Ambitious storytelling and high production values from an exceptional creative team and a truly international cast trace a hero’s journey from village boy to fearless warrior.”
We say: Coproduced by Hungary’s TV2 Network and Austrian public broadcaster ORF, this highly anticipated historical event series set in the 15th century will receive its world premiere at Mipcom on Tuesday October 22.
Finding the Titanic: Secrets from the Depths (2x60’)
Producer: BriteSpark Films
Distributor: Sphere Abacus
They say: “Interweaves the story of the discovery of the ship with a retelling of how it first came to rest on the ocean floor.”
We say: Next September marks the 40th anniversary of the discovery of the world’s most famous ship, and this two-parter for Channel 4 in the UK sheds light on how the wreck was finally discovered in 1985 by a team of US and French scientists and explorers.
BORDERS ARE NOW UNDER BOSSANOVA CONTROL
AIRPORT SECURITY: USA
12x60’
ACCESS & OBS DOCS
BORDERFORCE USA: THE BRIDGES
5 Series 52x60’
ACCESS & OBS DOCS
SEIZED AT SEA
12x60’
ACCESS & OBS DOCS
BORDER PATROL
13 series 134x30’
ACCESS & OBS DOCS
Crá (Boglands, 6x45’)
Producer: Fíbín Films
Distributor: About Premium Content
They say: “In an isolated village in the northwest of Ireland, with its own laws and codes of conduct, a murder investigation begins when a police officer’s missing mother is discovered buried in a bog after 15 years.”
We say: Irish-language scripted is all the rage following the breakout success of hit film Kneecap this summer, and this series for BBC Northern Ireland and TG4 marks Connemara-based Fíbín’s first crime drama.
Mommy Knows Best (format)
Producers: Lineup Industries, VRT
Distributor: Lineup Industries
They say: “Singletons go on dates with three suitors, in the company of their respective mothers who take the reins of the situation in order to find the best match for their son or daughter.”
Matlock (18x60’)
Producer: CBS Studios
Distributor: Paramount Global Content Distribution
They say: “A brilliant septuagenarian decides to rejoin the work force at a prestigious law firm where she uses her unassuming demeanour and wily tactics to win cases.”
We say: The iconic lawyer who puts young people behind bars where they belong, as The Simpsons’ Dr Hibbert once put it, is now played by Kathy Bates in this CBS reboot of the classic mystery legal drama.
We say: One of a growing crop of formats that initially began on YouTube before being developed for TV, this hit Belgian dating format has already been remade in Spain by Atresmedia.
Sven (1x90’)
Producer: Whisper Film & TV
Distributor: Fifth Season
They say: “A tell-all tale that transcends football, this documentary offers a moving reflection on Sven’s life, featuring insights from stars like Wayne Rooney and David Beckham.”
We say: Commissioned by Amazon’s Prime Video for the UK and Nordics, this moving and illuminating doc launched on August 23, just days before the iconic Swede and former England men’s football team manager died aged 76 following a terminal cancer diagnosis.
They say: “Residing in a quaint tourist town, Emily finds herself compelled to investigate not so quaint local murders.”
We say: Based on the a podcast of the same name from Audible, this cosy crime series from Hallmark+ also ticks the festive programming box with its tale of an outwardly friendly, optimistic shop owner with a sardonic sense of humour, cunning intellect and keen eye for detail.
The Eunuch Maker (2x60’)
Producers: Future Studios, Krempelwood
Distributor: Blue Ant Studios
They say: “Presents broadcasters and streamers with a fascinating, topical and somewhat alternative story about sex, gender identity, personal freedom and the limits of consent.”
We say: This shocking Hearst Networks true crime documentary follows journalist Marcel Theroux as he explores the dark story of a group of men who were found to be performing castrations and live streaming them to paying customers online in 2022.
Ena (6x60’)
Producers: RTVE, La Cometa TV, Zona App, Ena La Serie AIE
Distributor: RTVE
Commercial
They say: “Tells the story of a young Englishwoman who becomes the Queen of Spain, renouncing everything to live in a foreign land where she faces an attempt on
Parenthood (5x60’)
Producer: Silverback Films
Distributor: All3Media International
They say: “A definitive natural history series about life’s greatest challenge: raising children.”
We say: Featuring never-before-seen animal behaviour, this captivating new series delivers a powerful, universal message about the importance of preserving our natural world, brought to life by the unrivalled combination of Sir David Attenborough and the BBC.
her life on her wedding day. Never fully accepted, she perseveres as queen, witnessing two world wars, a civil war and the deadly Spanish flu.”
We say: Adapted from the novel of the same name by Pilar Eyre, this royal period drama premieres on the first night of Mipcom as part of this year’s Spain: Country of Honour programme as one of the latest high-end Spanish productions set to travel the world.
Smoggie Queens (6x30’)
Producer: Hat Trick
Distributor: Hat Trick International
They say: “Comedy is notoriously hard to sell as humour doesn’t always travel, but this is a genre that international audiences are crying out for.”
We say: The stars of this BBC Three comedy from the makers of Derry Girls, centring on a gang of LGBTQ+ friends in the town of Middlesbrough in the north-east of England, will be strutting their stuff in Cannes.
A World Divided (6x52’)
Producers: Looks Film, IRIS Group, Bes ide Productions, Momakin, HAKA Films
Distributor: Looks International
They say: “Radically subjective, highly emotional and told from multiple perspectives… forges a new transnational narrative from the history we thought we knew.”
We say: With the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War taking place in 2025, pubcasters in France, Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic are lining up this historical drama series that spans the years 1939 to 1962.
Reunion (4x60’)
Producer: Warp Films
Distributor: BBC Studios
They say: “The journey of a deaf man determined to right his wrongs, while unravelling the truth behind the events that led him to prison.”
We say: Featuring a stellar cast that includes Matthew Gurney, Lara Peake, Anne-Marie Duff, Alan Wilyman, Eddie Marsan and Rose AylingEllis, this series from William Mager, a deaf writer, is made by the team behind This Is England and promises to be a gripping emotional thriller with themes of revenge and redemption.
Africa vs Western Powers: The Underside of a Divorce (1x52’)
Producer: CAPA
Distributor: Newen Connect
They say: “Revealing insights into tensions between Africa and the former colonial European powers, made by award-winning co-directors Alexandra Jousset and Ksenia Bolchakova.”
We say: This France 5 documentary explores the rapid deterioration in relationships between African states and France, the rest of Europe and the US, while also examining the roles Russia, China and Iran are playing in this unravelling dynamic.
Ksenia Bolchakova and Alexandra Jousset
Kids @
Jan. 20-23, Hilton Miami Downtown
Meet these key childrenʼs programme buyers and commissioners at the market
Content Americas Kids Advisory Board members include:
Pablo Zuccarino
Head of kids and animation, LatAm and portfolio strategy, international Warner Bros. Discovery Latin America
Adriano Schmid VP of PBS kids content PBS
Ed Galton CEO, Cake
Agustina Dompe
Content acquisitions senior manager The Walt Disney Company Latin America
Agnes Augustin
and CEO Shaw Rocket Fund
Carolina Lightcap CEO, LightCubed Media
Adina Pitt Kids Media Specialist
Josh Mandel Senior executive, development and production, Amazon
Ken Faier CEO and president Epic Story Media President
C a r t o o n
B u s i n e s s
The New Content Economy: this is what happens next…
For context, the fundamental changes taking place in the global content business are a trifle set against the existential threat to mankind brought on the wings of climate change, the erosion of truth through an ever-more-corrupt social media, and the escalating political and commercial quest for power in an increasingly dysfunctional world.
So don’t worry, it’s ultimately not so much that you won’t get your show commissioned because ‘we have something very similar in development’ or ‘there’s no budget,’ but because we’ll all be living in the woods surviving on berries and campfire stories about the good ol’ days while crops burn and the last polar bear slips beneath the waves.
However, in our own back yard, the devastation currently being wreaked on the business previously known as television is without precedent.
Change has come because the fragmentation of media and entertainment makes it virtually impossible for one piece of content to demonstrate an acceptable return on investment for the writer, producer, financier, distributor, channel or platform supporting it. As it turns out, you can have way too much of an average thing.
“But from this primordial sludge a new generation of producer is emerging, born of influencers but now maturing to take increasingly bold offerings direct to audiences without the need for the approval of a commissioner. The Creator Economy is coming of age, and you can be part of it if you adapt your approach!
As the wildfires of change burn across the global entertainment business, C21’s editor-in-chief & managing director, David Jenkinson, suggests what you should do to define your future in The New Content Economy.
across markets and platforms previously not available.
3. Think Elastic: it’s not Digital First it’s Everything Together Don’t buy into the already-tired notion of ‘digital first.’ Content should be conceived as something that works EVERYWHERE. It’s elastic and it doesn’t stop at the edge of the screen.
4. Find new partners
NEW partnerships have never been more important. Coproduction is vital, but not just within the TV space.
The fragmentation of media and entertainment makes it virtually impossible for one piece of content to demonstrate an acceptable return on investment.
This Creator Economy is forecast to grow from US$100bn globally in 2023 to US$250bn by 2028. And, of course, AI will supercharge everything, providing the technology to those who want to enter the content creation business with everything they need to make a show as ‘professionally’ as a mainstream TV drama for a 10th of the price. It will also provide that opportunity to the traditional business. So what happens next, and how can you stake a claim in The New Content Economy?
Here are 10 things to consider:
1. Make it cheaper
AI will help you make shows for 75% less than before. Without it, you will not be able to compete. Get into it before it’s too late.
2. Make it smarter
AI will also allow you to create multiple versions for different territories, platforms and audiences, extending your opportunity
5. Talk to commissioner brands
Money talks, and advertisers have fresh appetite for backing content. They are the new commissioners in many ways.
6. You are a creator – go direct to your audience It doesn’t need to be commissioned, it needs to find its audience everywhere. Be part of the creator economy. Change your thinking.
7. Be comfortable with the third window TV still has a role to play. You can have a seat at the table without being first.
8. Start dating again
There are lots more fish in the sea. But you need to swim in a new ocean.
9. Authenticity is replacing celebrity
You don’t need a heritage brand to succeed in The New Content Economy, you need a fresh voice and a following. Authenticity is replacing celebrity.
post@c21media.net
EDITORIAL
Editorial director Ed Waller ed@c21media.net
Editor of C21Media.net Jonathan Webdale jonathan@c21media.net
Chief sub-editor Gary Smitherman gary@c21media.net
Head of design John Winfield john@c21media.net
Senior sub-editor Steve Warrington steve@c21media.net
News editor Clive Whittingham clive@c21media.net
Channel21 International editor Nico Franks nico@c21media.net
Video editor/motion designer Adrian Ruiz Martin adrian@c21media.net
FINANCE
Finance director Susan Dean susan@c21media.net
Finance manager Marina Sedra marina@c21media.net
PRODUCTION
Head of digital Laura Stevens laura@c21media.net
Production manager Courtney Brewster courtney@c21media.net
Team assistants Caitlin Wren caitlin@c21media.net
Lily Miller lily@c21media.net
Rory Mullan Wilkinson rory@c21media.net
Office manager Katie Reilly katie@c21media.net
Executive director Mark Rowland mark@c21media.net
Group CFO (consultant) Ravi Ruparel ravi@c21media.net
10. There is no going back It’s over. You need to move on. Get over it. But this is not the end, it’s the end of the beginning. Everything is about to change – embrace it. The old models do not work in The New Content Economy, so stop trying to make them happen, they are not going to happen. ‘Fetch!’
Editor-in-chief & managing director David Jenkinson david@c21media.net
