Leading the way in global television

week 41

13 October 2011

Leading the way in global television The path for FremantleMedia’s growth going forward

France / LuxembourgIP Network celebrates20th anniversary GermanyFrapa publishes study on format protection

FranceMélissa Theuriau heads to GazaNetherlandsRTL Nederland infects the country with dancing fever

the RTL Group intranetweek 41

Cover: David Ellender, Tony Cohen, Jeff Tahler, Sander Schwartz and Trish Kinane (from left to right) at Mipcom

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FremantleMedia’s traditional Press Breakfast on the first day of Mipcom is a keystone event at the TV trade show – a must for all journalists covering the TV business. This year, a record number of journalists attended the briefing, which took place on 3 October at the FremantleMedia stand, with around 50 representatives in attendance from media titles including The Economist, Broadcast, Variety, C21 and Content Asia.

Tony Cohen, CEO of FremantleMedia, told the journalists: “It has been a solid but challenging year. We’re creating inspiring programming on the production side of our business around the world: Got Talent is the number one programme in seven countries, X Factor is number one in five and The Farmer Wants A Wife in four – they all show that we are delivering on our promise of creating inspiring entertainment. We have also made excellent progress in our Enterprises division – from the sponsorship deals we’ve done in the US to our achievements in drama on US cable and in our Kids and Family Entertainment division. We’re also focussing on three growth areas for the future: branded entertainment, gaming and kids.”

As part of this strategy, FremantleMedia announced it would double its investment in kids’ content. The decision to ramp up kids’ entertainment follows the success of recent projects like My Babysitter’s Vampire, which was launched on the Disney Channel in the US in June 2011. The series is produced by Fresh TV, distributed globally by FremantleMedia

Enterprises (FME), and is currently the number one cable show of 2011 in the US amongst children aged two to eleven.

Mipcom takes places every year in October, and as the international television event came to a close last week, organisers announced that the numbers were up – with more than 12,500 delegates in attendance compared to the 11,500 who attended April’s Mip TV.

Branded entertainment, gaming and kidsIn Cannes, Tony Cohen talked about the three growth areas for RTL Group’s production arm.United Kingdom - 13 October 2011

Tony Cohen

Max Steel


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Additional kids projects announced by Sander Schwartz, President of Kids and Family Entertainment, include Max Steel, Black Dawn and Grojband. Max Steel will be co-produced by Mattel and FME, who will also manage worldwide distribution of the series (excluding the US) as well as global home entertainment rights. Grojband is a new animated musical comedy series for children 6 to 11 years of age. FME will serve as the worldwide distributor for television, brand licensing, home entertainment rights and other ancillary rights (excluding Canada). Black Dawn meanwhile, is the first project to come out of FME and Animation Collective’s recently-announced partnership to develop content for the kids and teen market.

Also at the Press Breakfast, David Ellender, Global CEO of FME, and Jeff Tahler, Senior Vice President, Acquisitions and Development, FME, announced two new scripted dramas FME will be taking to international buyers: Blood and Treasure, a rollercoaster one-hour law-enforcement drama series that forms part of FME’s ongoing first-look deal with Landscape Entertainment; and Universal Soldier, a rebooting of the hit movie franchise, which will be written by Damian Kindler (Stargate, Sanctuary), produced by FremantleMedia North America and developed, co-produced and distributed by FME. In addition, David Ellender announced the sales of two other major titles in FME’s drama catalogue – The Wedding Band to Channel Five in the UK and TBS Latin America, and the sale of Winners and Losers to ITV 2 in the UK, making it the first drama ITV 2 has acquired in two years.

Trish Kinane, FremantleMedia’s Acting President of Worldwide Entertainment, introduced journalists at the breakfast to FremantleMedia’s slate of new formats for Mipcom, saying: “We have a very strong line-up of new shows for buyers at this market that will appeal to audiences around the world. There is still a huge global demand for entertainment formats like Got Talent, X Factor and Idols and we have some very innovative new shows in this genre like Hidden Stars from our Danish production company, Blu. It’s had a very good launch in Denmark recently. We also have some fantastic new game shows like Body Bowling which will be great fun for all the family – this is another genre that is doing very well internationally.”

Hidden Stars is a fresh entertainment format that sees friends and family submit performances from singers who would never normally enter a talent show. The unsuspecting singers are then surprised with visits from celebrity mentors and invited to audition live on the spot. Each mentor, a star of today, chooses the contestant they think is a star of tomorrow. Together, they prepare duets to sing in the studio show before viewers decide which singing duo is eliminated each week. Other new formats in FremantleMedia’s slate include talent shows like Don’t Stop Me Now, a rapid-fire, high-stakes contest for stand-up comics, singers and variety performers, where ejecting the bad acts is as much fun as discovering genuine talent. The fun continues

Hidden Stars

Body Bowling


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with physical game show Body Bowling from Fuji TV, the creators of Hole In The Wall, which sees contestants become the ball for a supersized strike. Break The Safe meanwhile is a thrilling new game show from FremantleMedia’s UK production arm Talkback Thames that tests teamwork to the max for the ultimate prize, while viewers share some of life’s most precious moments in the reality format Hotel Stories.

FremantleMedia also presented some classic formats which it has rejuvenated for modern audiences. Trish Kinane: “We’re bringing a fresh take on the classic show Through The Keyhole along with a revitalised version of The Villa. These formats are ripe for reinvention. They were extremely popular when they were first on air – Through The Keyhole for example, throws open the doors to the homes of the stars and won exceptional ratings when it first launched. With a whole new generation of celebrities, now is the perfect time to bring it back. The Villa was also a firm favourite when it first aired in the UK. It’s a dating format from Talent Television that has now been redeveloped by FremantleMedia’s Blue Circle in the Netherlands with constructed reality elements. It’s about young men and women looking for love in the sun and it is doing extremely well in Holland, particularly with young adults.”

Through The Keyhole is an invitation into the homes of the well known and well-loved. This classic panel game format takes the viewer for an exclusive look inside the lavish, exotic, and downright quirky homes of the rich and famous, asking one essential question: who lives in a house like this? Through The Keyhole is from David Paradine Productions and won exceptional ratings when it first launched on ITV 1; it was the number one show in its prime-time slot and easily attracted more than double the audience share of its nearest competitor. It also flourished in BBC One’s daytime schedule and has won audiences in Belgium, Denmark, Germany and Sweden as well.

Candidates of The Villa

The Villa of the Dutch format De Villa


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On Wednesday 5 October, advertising clients from France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and other European countries as well as representatives from media agencies and RTL Group gathered in Paris to celebrate the 20th anniversary of IP Network. “This is the first time ever that our most important clients and senior executives from RTL Group’s channels and sales houses from all over Europe have come together – and we are very flattered by this strong interest in today’s conference about the future of TV,” said Marc Schorestene, the CEO of IP Network, in his welcome note to more than 220 participants.

With a small team of 33 employees and offices in six European cities, IP Network’s key mission is to support the various TV channels and radio stations in attracting advertising clients from abroad – for example from Germany or the Netherlands to buy airtime on M6 in France. In total, IP Network represents and sells advertis-ing airtime for 40 TV channels and 16 radio stations in 11 countries. This also includes some channels like ITV and VTM, which are not part of RTL Group. “There are three main reasons for IP Network’s successful development over the past 20 years: the leading positions of the brands we represent, the strong support from our local advertising sales teams and the multilingual, highly skilled and motivated IP Network staff,” said Marc Schorestene.

Television – the beating heart of advertising campaignsIP Network – RTL Group’s international advertising sales house – celebrated its 20th anniversary in Paris with a conference on the future of TV titled “Vision’air Day”.France / Luxembourg - 7 October 2011

Marc Schorestene

Gerhard Zeiler


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In the first presentation, RTL Group CEO Gerhard Zeiler explained the broadcasting business model in the digital age. To under-line why TV will remain the most powerful medium in this age, Zeiler debunked four false assumptions about TV, or “myths” as he called them, by presenting the most recent available facts and figures. First, TV viewing is still on the increase in all major markets. Second, so far there has been no cannibalisation effect from on-demand services on traditional, scheduled television. In other words, non-linear viewing is additional viewing. Third, television drives online searches as well as discussions on social networks. So TV’s role as the leading medium is not replaced by online services, but rather enhanced. And fourth: TV and online also complement each other in terms of advertising – and that is why TV’s overall advertising share has remained stable.

Tess Alps, the CEO of Thinkbox, the marketing body of commercial TV in the UK, later elaborated on Gerhard Zeiler’s arguments, presenting some of the key findings of the various benchmark studies Thinkbox has conducted over the past years to prove the effectiveness of TV advertising: campaigns that include TV lead to more market share gains, with TV advertising becoming more effective over time. TV spend also delivers the most extra sales per pound spent on advertising. TV has a “halo effect” on other media, it establishes the “beating heart” of a campaign which then resonates with print and online advertising. And as TV advertising drives internet searches and also triggers direct purchase decisions on the Net, TV is becoming a point-of-sale medium.

Gary Carter, the Chief Operating Officer of FremantleMedia, gave a highly informative and entertaining insight into “The Culture of Formats”, explaining how and why TV formats travel across the world. “First of all, FremantleMedia is in the idea business. While TV is very important, it is not at the centre of our business model. A creative idea is at the centre, an idea we can bring to multiple platforms and channels – TV of course, but also gaming, merchandising and live events,” said Gary Carter. These core ideas then become format brands such as Got Talent, X Factor or Idols. With 164 series produced in 44 territories and 5.8 billion votes (and counting), Idols has become one of the most successful TV formats.

As broadcasters want to mitigate their risks when commissioning new programmes, tried and tested format brands become more valuable, Carter explained. According to FremantleMedia’s COO, there are two types of formats that can overcome cultural barriers to travel to many countries: a “representation of contest” or a “contest of representation”. “Representations of contests” are reliant on a clear set of rules that remove any cultural barriers – this applies to popular sports such as football or tennis, but also to the long-running game show The Price Is Right. On the other hand, talent shows such as Got Talent or Idols fall into the category “contest of representation”. Gary Carter: “They share a mutual frame. But we don’t need to make them more German or French in their respective markets, because the contest-ants are German and French. Their dreams and aspirations are universal stories.”

After the conference, the participants moved to the iconic Eiffel tower to enjoy an impressive view of Paris, food prepared by contestants from M6’s well-known cooking shows such as Top Chef – and to explore the latest TV technology exhibited at the Salle Gustave Eiffel.

Gary Carter


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The new report was presented at a Mipcom press conference in Cannes hosted by Frapa chairwoman Ute Biernat, Managing Director of Grundy Light Entertainment and David Lyle, CEO of National Geographic Channels. The report was prepared by international media and telecommunications law firm Olswang and supported by the State of North Rhine- Westphalia. It looks at 14 TV territories including: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, India, the UK and the US. Its aim is to provide a practical, user-friendly guide to the legal options available to TV format creators, maximising their chances of winning legal proceedings should their programmes become the subject of a dispute.

The report also examined over 40 reported judgements from around the world, covering copyright, unfair competition, breach of confidence, and trademark disputes. In most of these cases, format creators successfully enforced their rights by relying on a suite of different laws that protected their programmes as valuable business assets. David Lyle said: “A hit international TV programme may be a license to print money, but a valuable format is also a vulnerable one and needs all the protection on offer. We believe this latest Frapa report will help the industry to protect the kernel of its business — the spark of creativity that lies at the heart of all great shows.”

Olswang found that the legal inconsistencies between territories and jurisdictions often resulted in a format being protected in one

country but not in another. While format imitators may be free to copy in one jurisdiction, they will struggle to distribute their copycat formats in others, thus significantly reducing the value of an imitation on the global market.

Frapa Report author and Senior Associate at Olswang, Priya Nagpal, said: “Olswang has been working with some of Europe’s most formidable TV brands and programme creators for decades, so we inherently understand the creative and business challenges faced by the industry. We’ve seen an evolution among format creators – they have become more sophisti-cated at restraining copycats by looking beyond copyright and instead using a variety of legal rights to protect their successful TV programmes. The report illustrates that this is a winning strategy and one that will continue to protect the value of these formats.”

The report positively revealed that format creators are enjoying increasing success in cases of unfair competition, unfair business practices and breach of confidence. Big Brother creator En-demol has had some success in the Netherlands and Brazil with its hit show, and there have been several successful copyright claims in Belgium, Canada and Spain. However, copyright infringement claims continue to be challenging, particularly in Germany, where a Supreme Court decision has created an unsympathetic environment for format disputes.

International television programmes are protected under lawThe latest Frapa report examines how international TV formats such as Big Brother or Who Wants to be a Millionaire? are protected by the laws of copyright, unfair competition, passing off and breach of confidence.Germany - 10 October 2011

For more information see

FRAPA.org

Ute Biernat


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A journalist to the core, and presenter of the news magazine Zone Interdite on M6, Mélissa Theuriau (currently on maternity leave and replaced by Claire Barsacq) was deeply involved out in the field. Last February, she visited the area devastated by the storm Xinthia to investigate its aftermath. More recently she travelled to the Gaza Strip with the assistance of Unicef to direct and produce her first documentary taking a close look at children affected by war.

An abridged version was aired last June on the magazine shows 66 minutes and Zone Interdite on M6, but the channel Téva devoted the latest edition of Les dossiers de téva to a longer version of the documentary entitled “Israël, Palestine: une jeunesse sacrifiée?” On this programme Mélissa Theuriau also shared her experiences and impressions.

Ever close to viewers’ concerns, Les dossiers de téva deciphers developments in our society. Each week, the magazine presented by Marielle Fournier meets people involved in social issues to better understand what’s at stake by taking a more personal approach.

Mission to GazaTéva broadcast the first documentary directed and produced by M6 journalist Mélissa Theuriau, about children affected by war in Gaza.France - 7 October 2011

Mélissa Theuriau with kids in Gaza

Mélissa Theuriau during the shooting of her documentary


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After a series of successful US dance movies in the Netherlands and the tremendous popularity of So You Think You Can Dance, the time had come for the Netherlands’ first major dance film: Body Language, directed by Jeffrey Elmont, a talented filmmaker from the Netherlands who has been active in the United States for some time now. He has made a name for himself as a director in video and advertising circles. The choreography was designed by Roy Julen, who also worked with the candidates in So You Think You Can Dance.

The storyline of the new film: just as the five best dance crews are due to head off to New York to take part in a competition, their subsidy is with-drawn, so the trip appears to be well and truly off. But five diehard dancers, one from a each of the crews, decide to go there anyway at their own expense. Only when they reach New York does what they have done fully sink in. There they are, far from home, with no money, no plan and not even their fellow dancers. Naturally, they’ve crossed the Atlantic to dance, so there’s only one thing to do…

Dance, dance, danceBody Language opened in Dutch cinemas. The movie is co-produced by RTL Nederland and features Floris Bosveld, the winner of the 2011 edition of So You Think You Can Dance.The Netherlands - 7 October 2011

Floris Bosveld

Five dancers on their way to New York to make their dreams come true

World champion TV

ratingsSebastian Vettel’s early Formula 1 World

championship triumph simultaneously

ensured world championship ratings on

RTL Television on Sunday: 5.75 million

viewers tuned in on early Sunday

morning, translating into an average

51.6 per cent of Germany’s TV

viewers watching.


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The power of science on M6M6 broadcast its latest edition of E=M6 on the topic “Little geniuses put to the test of science!”, drawing 3 million viewers and raising the science magazine series’ ratings.France - 11 October 2011

A virtuoso pianist on RTL RadioA partner of the greatest French and international artists, RTL Radio played host to the genius of the pianist Lang Lang, who performed a private concert at the Grand Studio in rue Bayard.France - 7 October 2011

Five years in GuantanamoShooting on the cinematic feature Fünf Jahre (Five Years), which tells the story of Guantanamo inmate Murat Kurnaz, began at the end of September.Germany - 10 October 2011

Jamie Oliver finds new homesFremantleMedia Enterprises has announced a new deal with Fox International Channels and ProSiebenSat1 which sees the channels 24 Kitchen in the Netherlands and Sixx in Germany become the new homes for Jamie Oliver titles.United Kingdom - 11 October 2011

Even more cooking fun with appsRTL 5 published a new app based on the shows Topchef and Wie Is De Chef? – thereby making the cooking shows even more fun on and off the TV screen.The Netherlands - 12 October 2011


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People

Anett Mende Germany - 12 October 2011

Anett Mende joins RTL II’s team of Nachrichtenjournal presenters and will take turns on the air with Peter Bohning and Christian Ehrig. Mende, 33, grew up in Saxony-Anhalt, and studied sociology and educational science at the University of Leipzig. She has worked on the RTL II news team since 2002. Mende presents the one-hour weekly review in rotation with Peter Bohning and Christian Ehrig. She will also continue to work in the newsroom and as a reporter. The weekly magazine programme covers the top issues of the past week, focusing on German and foreign political news, and the major events of the week. Consumer advice and cinema reviews and much more round off the coverage. Das Nachrichtenjournal is presented by Anett Mende, Christian Ehrig and Peter Bohning, Sundays on RTL II.

Anett Mende

http://backstage.rtlgroup.frhttp://backstage.rtlgroup.comhttp://backstage.rtlgroup.de

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Leading the way in global television