News


Sally Miles to run enlarged Passion following Tinopolis deal

Passion Distribution boss Sally Miles has told TBI that she will run an enlarged distribution company after Tinopolis acquired her company. Mentorn International boss David Leach added that he will step down once the An Idiot Abroad distributor is folded into Passion. Tinopolis, which owns British production companies including Daybreak Pictures, Pioneer, Sunset + Vine […]

Nickelodeon acquires BAFTA winner Lost and Found

Nickelodeon has acquired the television rights to animated feature film Lost and Found in the US, UK and Australia after striking a deal with distributor Entertainment One Family. The Viacom-owned broadcaster will premiere the animated project in December. Lost and Found, which was produced by British production company Studio AKA, tells the story of a […]

Fox Int’l Channels moves into sports with EMM approval

Fox International Channels has had its acquisition of Dutch sports firm EMM approved by local regulators, marking its first major step towards launching sport channels in Europe. The News Corp-owned international broadcaster acquired a 51% stake in EMM, which manages the rights for Holland’s top football league and runs the Eredivisie Live channel, in August […]

Former European TV chief Mockridge to leave News Corp

Former Sky Italia and News Corp European television chief executive Tom Mockridge has resigned as CEO of News International, News Corp’s newspaper publishing arm, and will leave the company at the end of the year to pursue other opportunities. Mockridge, who became CEO at News International last year, had previously served as CEO of Australian […]

Viasat strikes volume deal with NBC Universal

Pan regional pay TV broadcaster Viasat has struck a volume deal with Hollywood studio NBC Universal for first run and library movies including Snow White and The Huntsman and Ted. The Modern Times Group-owned pay operator has inked a multi-year licensing agreement with the studio for the pay rights in Russia, Ukraine and the other […]

US net Starz acquires Alphanim animated series

US premium broadcaster Starz has acquired three animated series from French producer and distributor Alphanim. The Chris Albrecht-helmed company, which operates the Starz Kids & Family channel, has picked up the US rights to 52x13mins adventure series The Green Squad, the second season of 52x13mins Gawayn and comic-book comedy Toto Trouble. Starz already airs Alphanim-distributed […]

Int’l broadcasters to remake Global Agency’s Blind Taste

A raft of Eastern European broadcasters are to remake food format Blind Taste after striking a deal with Turkish distributor Global Agency. Russia’s MTV and Ukraine’s K1 are to produce local versions of the format that will launch in January. The format has also been optioned in France, Italy, Spain and Bulgaria and Global Agency […]

MTG launches HD channels package in Russia

Pay TV broadcaster Modern Times Group has launched a new HD channel package on Rostelecom’s Russian pay TV network. The Viasat Premium HD package comprises Viasat’s two new premium HD movie channels TV1000 Premium HD and TV1000 Megahit HD, new comedy channel TV1000 Comedy HD and two Viasat HD documentary channels Viasat History HD and […]

Australia’s ABC acquires Annoying Orange

Australian public broadcaster ABC has acquired Annoying Orange, the television series based on the viral hit. This marks the property’s first international sale after its debut in the United States via Cartoon Network. The series is produced by The Collective and the deal was struck with ABC by Stella Projects, who alongside Gaffney Global Licensing, […]

América Móvil launches Netflix rival

Latin America’s largest telco América Móvil is taking on Netflix with the launch of a cut-price programme streaming service. The Clarovideo service has rolled out in Mexico and undercuts Netflix with a monthly subscription fee of Peso69 (US$5.32). Netflix, meanwhile, launched last year and is priced at Peso99. In its latest financial results Netflix said it […]