UK pay TV network Challenge is to revamp its schedule in the new year with new deals for action format Fear Factor and a number of classic British gameshows. The Virgin Media owned broadcaster has acquired the Australian and South African versions of Fear Factor from Endemol. Brad Wood, acquisitions executive at Challenge, told TBIvision […]
Australian broadcaster Network Seven has won the bidding war for an exclusive output deal with NBC Universal International Distribution, beating out rival broadcasters Nine and Ten. Previously, the NBC Universal programming catalogue had been shared between Seven and Ten, harking back to the days before the creation of NBC Universal in 2004, which was formed […]
After a lengthy stint at UK broadcaster ITV, Buck and fellow former ITV production chief Damien Timmer are running indie drama producer Mammoth Screen. Granada International took a 25% stake in the company in July. Broadcasters are under pressure, what’s the impact on drama?Commissioners don’t give as much as they used to but the audience […]
Xilam, the French animation outfit, is working on a second season of Japanese ninja series Shuriken School after the show was named 2007’s best selling French export by industry association TV France International. The 26x26mins animated show, which has been sold to broadcasters such as Nicktoons in the US and Jetix Europe, was awarded the […]
Aardman International, the distribution arm of the Bristol-based animation outfit, has picked up distribution rights to BreakThru Films’ stop-frame animation Peter and the Wolf and has already sold the show to four broadcasters. The show, which is produced by Hugh Welchman, was first aired by UK broadcaster Channel 4 last year. Alix Wiseman, head of […]
French commercial broadcaster M6 has cancelled the local version of Mark Burnett’s format Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? because of poor ratings. The show, Etes-vous plus fort qu’un élève de 10 ans, which is produced by Endemol France’s subsidiary Mark Burnett Productions France, failed to find ratings in its daily prime time spot. […]
Gameshow format The Rich List has been successfully sold around the world and has picked up audiences in Britain and Germany, although it flopped in the United States The show pits two teams of contestants who have to bid on their knowledge of certain subjects, such as movies starring Tom Cruise or sports results. BBC […]
James Murdoch has resigned as chief executive of UK pay TV operator BSkyB to take up a corporate position at parent company News Corp. He will run News Corp’s European and Asian divisions, which operates publishing and broadcasting operations including Sky Italia and Asia’s Star. Rupert Murdoch has stepped down as chairman and director of […]
Disney plans to overhaul its international web presence following a revamp of its UK site Disney.co.uk. However, it has no current plans to offer full length episodes of its hit television shows such as Hannah Montana or feature films like Pirates of the Caribbean on its own site, which will be used primarily as a […]
Chris Gifford is the co-creator of hit preschool series Dora the Explorer and spin-off series Go, Diego, Go! He also composed music for the Dora the Explorer stage show. When did you realise Dora was a hit?It didn’t get massive until after two years on air. Ratings were strong but it wasn’t seen as a […]
