Banijay eyes strong second half of 2024 as Q1 production & distribution revenues fall

Rogue Heroes (Source: BBC)

Banijay is expecting the delivery of shows such as SAS: Rogue Heroes and Marie Antoinette to propel its revenues in the second half of the year, after declines across the MasterChef and Big Brother owner’s production and distribution divisions in Q1.

The French giant’s gaming and live event units helped to increase its Group revenues by 10.5% to €1bn ($1.1bn), with adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest Tax Depreciation & Amortisation) up 11.2% at €164m.

Content production revenue was down 2.3% to stand at €541m ($588m), however, with the decline blamed on the timing of programme delivery compared with 2023.

MasterChef Portugal

Banijay pointed to programme highlights including Spanish reality music talent show Operación Triunfo, first broadcast in 2001, which relaunched on Amazon Prime Video in November 2023 and became the most-watched Spanish premiere for the platform with 3.5 million views over the season.

Revenues at distribution arm Banijay Rights were also down, falling 12.5% to €60.5m in Q1, a decline that the French group said was due to “a high comparison basis” in Q1 2023 when “a significant number” of new scripted shows were delivered.

Banijay added that its catalogue increased by a further 4,000 hours to stand at 189,000 hours by the end of March, with formats such as MasterChef and Deal Or No Deal highlighted.

The results were offset by Banijay’s live experiences unit’s revenue rise from €35.5m in Q1 2023 to €77.8m this year, aided by the acquisition of Balich Wonder Studios.

The French giant’s gaming division also posted strong growth, with revenues up from €243m in 2023 to €321m in 2024, taking overall revenue up from €900m in 2023 to €1bn in 2024.

Big Brother Knossi Edition

Banijay added that it expected further growth this year, increasing its guidance for adjusted EBITDA to the low teens from a “high single-digit” previously.

This will be fueled by its sports betting and gaming unit, the company said, as well as a stronger H2 pipeline thanks to the delivery of new seasons of shows such as Marie-Antoinette for Canal+ in France and SAS Rogue Heroes for BBC One in the UK.

The company added that it would be renaming its formal entity, FL Entertainment, to become Banijay Group. The rebrand would, it said, “reflect the ambition of the group to be the leading European leader in the global entertainment space”.

Divisions include content & production focused Banijay Entertainment; event business Banijay Live; and Banijay Gaming, which houses consumer-facing brands Betclic and Bet at Home.

François Riahi, CEO of Banijay Group, said its results had been driven “by the outstanding performance of online sports betting & gaming” and “a strong demand for formats and shows from both streaming platforms and linear broadcasters.” He added that major show deliveries into the second half of the year would “deliver strong growth”.