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TVEUROPE
WWW.TVEUROPE.WS
JUNE /JULY 2016
NATPE BUDAPEST & SUNNY SIDE OF THE DOC EDITION
Formats in CEE / Factual Trends
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CONTENTS
Rules and Regulations
FEATURES 8
Across the globe, countries are quickly realizing that their media laws need to adapt to the world we live in now—one with VPNs and geo-blocking, global licensing deals and cross-border co-pros, rising production costs and an advertising market that has been upended with changing consumption habits.
Ricardo Seguin Guise Publisher Anna Carugati Group Editorial Director Mansha Daswani Editor Kristin Brzoznowski Executive Editor Joanna Padovano Managing Editor Sara Alessi Joel Marino Associate Editors Victor L. Cuevas Production & Design Director Phyllis Q. Busell Art Director Simon Weaver Online Director Dana Mattison Senior Sales & Marketing Manager Elizabeth Walsh Sales & Marketing Manager Andrea Moreno Business Affairs Manager
Ricardo Seguin Guise President Anna Carugati Executive VP Mansha Daswani Associate Publisher & VP of Strategic Development TV Europe © 2016 WSN INC. 1123 Broadway, #1207 New York, NY 10010 Phone: (212) 924-7620 Fax: (212) 924-6940 Website: www.tveurope.ws
The European Commission (EC) recently issued a new directive regarding audiovisual media services “in view of changing market realities,” updating regulations that have been in place for nearly three decades. The move comes as part of the EC’s Digital Single Market strategy, which aims to “bring down barriers to unlock online opportunities.” One of the biggest proposals included in the directive is a European content quota for online platforms: ondemand providers must ensure that at least 20 percent of their offerings are sourced from the continent. (The region’s OTT market is picking up, particularly in the U.K. and France, but the penetration rate of subscription streaming services still lags well behind the U.S., according to recent data from Parks Associates.) The updated EC directive also addresses changes in the ad market, with viewers often switching to online ondemand services in order to avoid the 30-second spots on TV. The new regulations give broadcasters more flexibility as to when ads can be shown. The overall limit of 20 percent of broadcasting time from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. will be maintained, but channels will have more flexibility when it comes to the 12 minutes per hour rule. “Broadcasters can choose more freely when to show ads throughout the day,” the directive states. In addition, broadcast and on-demand services will have more options for product placement and sponsorship models. The ad market in Europe is most definitely in flux— digital revenues edged past television in 2015, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau’s AdEx Benchmark. Digital grew the fastest in Ireland, followed by Bulgaria and Poland. We take a close look at trends in Central and Eastern Europe in this edition, with an in-depth report on the booming formats market. Local production has long been a valuable commodity in this part of the world, and broadcasters are keen to find the best concepts from the global market, from scripted dramas and comedies to shiny-floor game shows and talent competitions. This edition also looks at trends in the factual-content business ahead of Sunny Side of the Doc in France. —Mansha Daswani
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8 TUNING INTO FORMATS A range of distributors weigh in on the current format trends across Central and Eastern Europe.
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12 MATTER OF FACT Reality shows, factual entertainment and high-end docs are finding slots across Central and Eastern Europe.
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Mediaset Distribution A Sicilian Story / Task Force 45: Friendly Fire / The Siffredi Family The new crime series A Sicilian Story (Romanzo Siciliano) is one of the titles that Mediaset Distribution is presenting to buyers from the CEE region at NATPE Budapest. The show spotlights a special task force operating in Sicily. The company is also offering up Task Force 45: Friendly Fire, which follows an Italian military officer who becomes involved in a terrorist conspiracy in Afghanistan, and The Siffredi Family, a reality show focused on the family of a former adult-entertainment star. “We like to offer series [that are] adaptable for all countries,” says Manuela Caputi, who serves as head of international sales for the Mediaset catalog. Caputi also highlights the unscripted format Mr Brown, which aired successfully for many years on Italia 1.
“Our plan is to increase the catalog and be ready to organize a big event dedicated to our Italian creativity.” —Manuela Caputi The Siffredi Family
MISTCO Resurrection / Filinta / What Happens to My Family MISTCO has been appointed as the exclusive sales agent for Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), and is headed to NATPE Budapest with a range of Turkish dramas to offer CEE buyers. “It is a well-known fact that there has been a huge demand for Turkish series and dramas all over the world,” says Aysegul Tuzun, MISTCO’s VP of sales and marketing. “And our main aim is to make a difference and bring a breath of fresh air to the industry.” Titles on offer include Resurrection (Ertugrul), about a man struggling to find a home for his tribe and the woman he is in love with; Filinta, a detective series set in the Ottoman era; and What Happens to My Family, a family drama. “We also offer over 30 TV movies that would provide never-before-seen slot opportunities for channels,” says Tuzun.
“Every title represented by MISTCO has been produced to international standards and tells its story to the audience with the highest production quality and strong casts.” —Aysegul Tuzun Resurrection
ORF-Enterprise Suburbia: Women on the Edge / Turtle Hero: A Cold Blooded Passion / The Secret Life of Snakes Brand-new episodes of Suburbia: Women on the Edge are part of ORF-Enterprise’s NATPE Budapest and Sunny Side of the Doc slates. “The ten new episodes live up to the resounding success of the first season and will capture the [attention] of both male and female viewers,” says Marion Camus-Oberdorfer, the head of international content sales at ORF-Enterprise. 4K documentaries from the UNIVERSUM strand are also among the company’s highlights. CamusOberdorfer says one such title, Turtle Hero: A Cold Blooded Passion, showcases “astonishing and exclusive 4K impressions of the natural habitat of cold-blooded reptiles.” Another UNIVERSUM documentary, The Secret Life of Snakes, “stands out with enthralling and astonishing shots of Europe’s most stunning snake species,” she adds.
“One of our main focus areas is the ongoing production of Ultra HD 4K programs, which meet the high expectations of ORF-Enterprise’s global buyers.” —Marion Camus-Oberdorfer Suburbia: Women on the Edge 22 WORLD SCREEN 6/16
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Red Arrow International Bosch / Kiss Bang Love / Cleverman The sophomore season of the crime series Bosch is being promoted for sales in Central and Eastern Europe by Red Arrow International. The show, which is based on books penned by Michael Connelly, stars Titus Welliver (Argo) as Harry Bosch, a homicide detective working in Los Angeles. “Season two sees Harry Bosch back on the job after an involuntary leave of absence,” says Bo Stehmeier, Red Arrow International’s senior VP of global sales. “Ready for action, his first case may prove his biggest challenge yet.” The company is also promoting Kiss Bang Love, a dating format from the creators of Married at First Sight, and Cleverman, a genre drama for Australia’s ABC and SundanceTV in the U.S. led by Iain Glen (Game of Thrones) and Frances O’Connor (The Missing).
“Now more than ever before, broadcasters and platforms in the CEE region are looking for the highest quality scripted drama and truly groundbreaking formats.” —Bo Stehmeier Kiss Bang Love
Terra Mater Factual Studios David Attenborough’s Light on Earth / Brazil: A Natural History / Ostrich: A Life on the Run Leading Terra Mater Factual Studios’s Sunny Side of the Doc (SSD) slate is David Attenborough’s Light on Earth, which sees the titular host explore bioluminescence. The company is also showcasing Brazil: A Natural History, celebrating the natural history of the South American country, and Ostrich: A Life on the Run, which shines a spotlight on the often-overlooked species. “Normally not more than an extra in natural-history films, the world’s biggest bird hits it really big this time,” says Sabine Holzer, Terra Mater’s head of TV, of Ostrich: A Life on the Run. She adds: “Our goal is to finalize our editorial discussions with potential partners at SSD to be able to move forward in the course of the summer and start production in autumn.”
“We’ll bring a mix of natural-history, science and history projects to SSD that require coproduction and presale funding, as well as a raft of available fresh docs.” —Sabine Holzer David Attenborough’s Light on Earth
ZDF Enterprises First Flight: Conquest of the Skies / Ku’damm 56: Rebel with a Cause / The Game Begins! At NATPE Budapest, ZDF Enterprises’s (ZDFE) labels are showcasing a lineup that covers a range of genres. ZDFE.factual is promoting First Flight: Conquest of the Skies, which questions whether the Wright brothers were actually the first to fly. There’s also the science documentary Why Size Matters and the nature and wildlife film The Lesser Caucasus: Between Ararat and the Caspian Sea. “Factual has always been an important genre for ZDF and ZDF Enterprises,” explains Fred Burcksen, ZDFE’s executive VP and COO. Ku’damm 56: Rebel with a Cause, meanwhile, is an event miniseries from ZDFE.drama that is set in 1956 at a dance school. “It’s a beautiful story,” says Burcksen. In terms of formats, ZDFE.entertainment’s offering includes game shows such as You Can’t Fool Me! and The Game Begins!
“We are always out there looking for the next big thing— everywhere, anytime.” —Fred Burcksen First Flight: Conquest of the Skies 24 WORLD SCREEN 6/16
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Keshet’s Rising Star on TV2 in Hungary. 26 WORLD SCREEN 6/16
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TUNING INTO Kristin Brzoznowski speaks to a range of distributors about the current format trends across Central and Eastern Europe. he lingering clouds of economic recession have parted in many of the countries across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), and those working in the TV business are enjoying the prospects of the brighter days ahead. Distributors have been reporting an upswing in program sales in the region for a few years now, and with broadcasters’ budgets opening up, format licensing has been in a particularly sunny spot. “Over the last five years we have been selling a lot of finished content in CEE, but especially in the last two years we are achieving some format sales there as well,” says Izzet Pinto, the founder and CEO of Global Agency. “It’s growing year after year.” Pinto cites increasing programming budgets in Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia in particular. He says that in these territories, buyers are interested in daily, stripped formats, which is why titles such as Shopping Monsters and Blind Taste have been strong sellers. Both of these formats present opportunities for advertisers and sponsors as well, Pinto notes. “Sometimes buyers can recoup around 50 percent of their investment from sponsors and the rest from ad sales,” he says. “We let them keep the sponsorship revenue so that they can recoup some of their investment. Showing them this flexibility is also comforting for them, because we have to make sure that they don’t lose any money and that the show gets profitable so that both sides benefit from it.” ITV Studios Global Entertainment’s (ITVS GE) wellestablished unscripted format brands continue to thrive in CEE, according to Jennifer Ebell, the company’s VP of sales for southeast EMEA. ITVS GE has seen recommissions across the region for formats such as Four Weddings (Hungary), The Chase (Croatia and Serbia), Come Dine with Me (Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland) and Hell’s Kitchen (Poland). Ebell says that factual entertainment has been selling best in CEE countries. “Being more of a hybrid genre—where one can see cooking, docusoaps, lifestyle, competition, etc.—it has broad appeal; it provides entertainment for everyone,” she explains. “From public broadcasters to small DTT channels, factualentertainment formats deliver low costs and easily adaptable scale. That is why we see formats such as Come Dine with Me continue to be successful across the region.” For Keshet International (KI), formats such as BOOM!, Rising Star and Master Class have been strong performers in CEE. In Hungary, for example, the local version of Master Class has delivered solid ratings for TV2. The third season was peaking with a 30-percent share, which is 88-percent above the channel’s average.
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Paula Cohen McHarg, who manages sales for KI in CEE and CIS, among other territories, says that a format like the musicbased Master Class is well suited for audiences across Central and Eastern Europe. “It’s family-friendly and heartwarming, and the traditional songs performed in the series also match the culture of the region and are loved by many.” The distributor has also made headway with some of its scripted formats, notably with comedies. The local version of Traffic Light had seven seasons in Russia on CTC, while Your Family or Mine was adapted in Greece and Ukraine. The Baker and the Beauty was also remade in Greece. “There are more and more similarities between CIS and CEE countries and forward-thinking, tech-savvy nations such as South Korea and Israel than there were before,” observes Cohen McHarg. “CIS and CEE countries that were used to broadcasting more traditional content are now embracing ‘the new’ and becoming more youthful as market pressures force them to modernize.”
NEW HORIZONS This bodes well for South Korea’s CJ E&M, which is looking to ramp up its business in this part of the world. “With the steady rise of our finished-tape sales in CEE, we are also witnessing growing interest in our formats there,” says Jangho Seo, the company’s head of international sales and acquisitions. And this is for both scripted and unscripted formats, Seo says. “Buyers are looking for big, shiny-floor, prime-time shows on the non-scripted side, while on the scripted side, they want strong scripts focused on family and romance, with conflicts among the characters.” CJ E&M’s Korean drama Ice Adonis was remade in Ukraine and several European countries have started to develop localized scripts. Scripted formats have proven popular in CEE for Mediaset Distribution, the international-sales arm of the Italian group Mediaset. Series with a lot of drama and action have been of particular interest to buyers in this region, according to Manuela Caputi, who heads up international sales for the Mediaset catalog at the company. This includes A Matter of Respect, adapted in Turkey and Russia; Tuscan Passion, licensed in Turkey; Police District, commissioned in Russia; and CentoVetrine, localized in Poland. Caputi says that the next step is to make inroads with its unscripted slate. At NATPE Budapest, the company will be talking to buyers about Rocco to the Rescue, which sees former adult-entertainment star Rocco Siffredi giving tips to couples in crisis, and the family-targeted Mr Brown. 6/16 WORLD SCREEN 27
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Mediaset Distribution has found success in CEE with its scripted formats, including Beyond the Lake, which was licensed in Croatia and Slovenia.
While Turkey and Russia have been the main clients in CEE for Mediaset Distribution’s scripted-format sales, Caputi believes that showcasing its unscripted entertainment catalog will open up new possibilities in Romania, Poland and Bulgaria. KI’s Cohen McHarg, meanwhile, has her sights set on the CIS. “CIS countries, particularly Russia, are taking more risks,” she says. “The most popular formats in Russia used to be big, established, proven formats, whereas now we’re starting to see a lot more smaller channels commissioning edgier and more risktaking content.” This is true outside of Russia as well. “New opportunities for sales lie with the smaller channels that in the past only acquired finished content,” says ITVS GE’s Ebell. “In some markets we are seeing these smaller DTT and satellite channels looking to commission their first local production.”
LEARNING TO ADAPT While budgets may have opened up enough that local production is viable, there are still many cost constraints that need to be addressed when selling formats in CEE. Oftentimes, studio sets are pared down and “less fancy,” notes Global Agency’s Pinto, “and sometimes there is a smaller production crew. In the end, the quality is probably lower than [Western] European standards, but it’s still pretty good.” Alongside scaling budgets, changes to episode duration are frequently requested in local markets. “Extending the running time of a show by tweaking its structure is very common,” says ITVS GE’s Ebell. “This is specifically to fit the viewing habits of the local audience and it provides greater ROI [return on investment].” Hell’s Kitchen, for example, is traditionally 60 minutes, but in Poland it runs as a 90-minute version. Ebell acknowledges that it’s still difficult to launch a new format into CEE that doesn’t come with a track record. “There are some great concepts out there, but locally the risk can prove to be too high. With limited time slots and constrained budgets, channels are hesitant to acquire that brand-new format. We have seen more local development, where the risk is the same but there is value to the broadcaster in owning the IP outright.” CJ E&M’s Seo agrees, and this is why co-development deals with broadcasters are among the avenues the company is exploring to get its formats business off the ground in CEE. According to Cohen McHarg, KI’s format business in the region is bolstered by the fact that the series it presents have already worked elsewhere. “The majority of our shows have been tried and tested in Israel, and some of them are the 28 WORLD SCREEN 6/16
highest rated in the country,” she says. “They are also family friendly and perfect weekend event entertainment, which is in high demand.” Cohen McHarg says that the greatest challenge when doing business in this part of the world is finding a balance between providing cost-effective solutions that allow smaller territories to commission big formats and doing so without compromising on quality. Global Agency’s Pinto cites fees as the biggest challenge when working in this market. “The fees offered are quite small,” he says. “We don’t want to [do a deal on a format] that underestimates its strength and value. We believe in our projects, but we also try to be supportive. We always try to find a middle ground. So, sometimes we will offer reasonable fees for first seasons and higher fees in the following seasons. Once they see the success, they are happy to share more [of the money] with us.” This benefits business in the long run, Pinto says, since once other territories in the region see how a format was able to be adapted successfully with a smaller budget, it spurs interest from neighboring countries. “Sometimes when there’s a success in Serbia, then Croatia buys it, then Macedonia, then Albania. If you can reach seven or eight territories, all added together the income isn’t bad. You have to make sure that you enter several territories in CEE so that it makes sense profit-wise.” Overall, Pinto is optimistic about the CEE format business, as he sees more opportunities opening up to score prime-time slots. “Greece currently has a better market for prime-time shows, but all countries in Central and Eastern Europe are growing to become potential buyers for primetime formats,” he says. “For example, Bulgaria is becoming an important market.”
IN THEIR PRIME Mediaset Distribution has already managed to score primetime slots in CEE with remakes of some of its long-running Italian series. Caputi believes the prospects for prime time will remain bright as long as the company continues to bring formats with “great stories, intense emotions and flexibility for adaptation.” “As for any region, the greatest opportunity is to develop the next big entertainment hit, or the next big long-running factual-entertainment format like Come Dine with Me,” says ITVS GE’s Ebell of her CEE priorities. “There is also a potential opportunity in scripted formats.” KI’s Cohen McHarg believes pooling resources could be a way forward for format success in CEE. “We see a great opportunity in creating CEE production hubs. Closing group deals and creating a production hub for formats such as BOOM! would be hugely beneficial, especially for multiple broadcasters.” With buyers across the region taking more risks, prime time continuing to open up, and producers and distributors becoming increasingly savvy about how to adapt to tight budgets, the forecast for the format business across CEE is sunny indeed.
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A+E Networks’s Pawn Stars.
Reality shows, factual entertainment and high-end docs are finding slots across Central and Eastern Europe. By Mansha Daswani he countries of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), given their history and geopolitical significance, have been the subjects of countless academic docs retelling crises of the past and current-affairs specials about the social and economic problems of the day. But when it comes to what kinds of factual fare the residents of this part of the world want to consume themselves, it’s all true crime and animal close-ups, quirky personalities and dramatic real-life situations. “We’ve seen a pickup [in the demand for] our big factual franchises, particularly the transactional franchises,” says Joel Denton, the managing director of international content sales and partnerships at A+E Networks, referencing properties like Storage Wars, Pawn Stars and American Pickers. “It’s those big factual juggernauts, if you like, the character-based shows [that are] selling and rating well.” Natural history is also a hot commodity, as BBC Worldwide has seen with the rollout of its BBC Earth brand across the region. “We’re now in nine territories across CEE and in three local languages: Romanian, Hungarian and Slovenian,” says
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Grant Welland, the executive VP for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa at BBC Worldwide. “After an excellent first year, we’re looking to expand distribution and launch in new territories across the region in 2016 and 2017.”
GET WILD! On the program-sales side, too, wildlife is proving to be a major seller for BBC Worldwide, with hits that include The Hunt, Shark and its Wild programming strand. High-end wildlife tops the slate for ORF-Enterprise, which is showcasing the UNIVERSUM titles Turtle Hero: A Cold Blooded Passion and The Secret Life of Snakes at NATPE Budapest. “With our passion for the production of high-quality wildlife and nature documentaries, we are ambitious to keep discovering more and more of the many secrets and wonders that our planet and its inhabitants still keep,” says Marion Camus-Oberdorfer, the head of international content sales at ORF-Enterprise, on the message the Austrian company is looking to get out to buyers in CEE.
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ORF-Enterprise is showcasing 4K blue-chip wildlife titles like The Secret Life of Snakes.
Elsewhere on the factual spectrum, GRB Entertainment is letting viewers in on other kinds of secrets in Untold Stories of the ER, its best-selling series in CEE. The show is part of a wave of reenactment series that have become popular in the territory, according to Benn Watson, GRB’s VP of international sales. Crime shows are also in demand, Watson notes, particularly investigative reporting. He also cites the popularity of the “over-the-shoulder” filming style used in series like GRB’s own FBI Takedowns. Rive Gauche Television has also placed several crime series in the region, among them Homicide Hunter, Pretty Bad Girls and Happily Never After. Its best sellers, meanwhile, have been My Strange Addiction, about people battling obsessive behaviors, and Fix It & Finish It, fronted by TV personality Antonio Sabato, Jr. In general, CEE buyers tend to prefer shows without presenters, “as that naturally gives them a better opportunity to either insert a voiceover or their own local host,” observes Marine Ksadzhikyan, the company’s senior VP of distribution and development. “But with names such as Sir David Attenborough, Louis Theroux and Gordon Buchanan, this is not always the case,” adds BBC Worldwide’s Welland. “These presenters work really well for audiences across CEE.”
POLE POSITION Nevertheless, Welland notes that the demand for local programming is on the rise. As such, BBC Worldwide is beginning to see interest in its factual formats, such as Junior Doctors, adapted by Poland’s TVP, and Maestro, remade for HRT in Croatia. 32 WORLD SCREEN 6/16
The factual-formats space is also a growth area for A+E Networks, which has clinched deals outside of the region on Pawn Stars, American Pickers and Dance Moms. Adaptations, Denton explains, “tend to rate better because you’ve got local talent and local stories. For us, it means those franchises get larger and we can then push those additional episodes to other clients around the world.” GRB’s Watson reports that he’s starting to hear format requests, particularly from Ukraine. “That’s an exciting area for us,” Watson says. “They are always happy to look at paper formats, whereas other territories wait for something to become big in the U.S. and then follow suit.” Poland, however, remains the region’s most lucrative territory. “Poland is by far the largest market in that region and it’s been great for us,” A+E’s Denton says. The Czech Republic and Hungary are slowly recovering from the economic turmoil of the last few years, says Denton, who adds that Croatia has also emerged as a key market. Another emerging market is the digital space. “In the last 12 months, we’ve finalized various package deals for OTT platforms within CEE and expect to service these outlets even more going forward,” Rive Gauche’s Ksadzhikyan says. “This area is rapidly expanding and evolving, and broadcasters themselves are creating their own digital platforms. We’re seeing a big appetite when filling content for these types of slots.” BBC Worldwide’s Welland, too, says that the OTT arena is “becoming increasingly significant.” Indeed, even as drama and entertainment shows make the most noise, factual series remain a staple of the CEE media diet, and with an expanding universe of pay-TV and OTT platforms to service in the region, the prospects for distributors heading to NATPE Budapest look upbeat.
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