MIPCOM: Day three deal round-up

The sun came out for the TV business on the Tuesday of MIPCOM, bringing with it another batch of deals and programme announcements.

There was a major studio agreement between Warner Bros. International Television Distribution and MENA-based pay TV player beIN Media.

The multi-year agreement was described as “long-term” and initially gives beIN access to shows such as Arrow, Gotham and The Originals. The deal also comprises exclusive second-window rights to Warner Bros. theatrical releases, before in 2019 becoming the Hollywood studio’s exclusive first-window partner for programming, series and feature films.

An Armoza format launched at the market, the suggestively titled modelling series Curvy Supermodel, was acquired by The Voice of Poland prodco Rochstar. It has been gaining big numbers in Germany for RTL2, whose compatriot, Global Screen, is also in the news.

The Munich-based distributor has a collection of fairy tale-themed programmes to Lagardere-owned network Gulli. This comprises programmes from ARD’s Finest Fairy Tales, including movies The Devil with the Three Golden Hairs and Snow White and Rose Red, and ZDF telemovies The Golden Goose and The White Snake.

There were more deals for Belgium’s Studio100, which sold exclusive free-to-air rights to new CGI toon Nils Holgersson and The Wild Adventures of Blinky Bill, plus non-exclusive SVOD rights, to pubcaster Radio Canada.

Malaysian companies have also been successful, closing deals worth more than US$4 million from their base in the basement of the Palais des Festivals.

Primeworks Studios scored a coproduction agreement with Japan’s Nippon TV to coproduce a second season of comedy Jenaka Kampung Kalut, and another with Canada’s Portfolio Entertainment, which has been previously announced.

Animasia Studio, meanwhile, will produce another two seasons of South African toon Super Strikas following an agreement with Strika Entertainment, while Subazoo will coproduce National Geographic Channel and Arte 3x50mins blue-chip series Borneo’s Secret Kingdom with Canada’s WildBear Entertainment.

Finally, Malaysian prodco Global Station debuted TV Azteca’s Mexican copro La Loba and Canal 13’s Chilean drama Papi Riki.

Elsewhere, Viewers of Israel’s DBS, Brazil’s Globosat and PBS America in the UK will get access to PBS International’s new Ken Burns and Artemis Joukowsky documentary Defying the Nazis: The Sharps’ War.

France-based Prime Entertainment Group inked a 50-hour programming deal with Canis Media for the latter’s UK network ShowBiz Television.

Away from the market, AOL announced a batch of originals at the IAB Digital Upfronts in the UK, UKTV commissioned a new three-part series, and Scripps ordered a pair for Travel Channel.

And there were absolutely no surprises on the cable drama front as AMC commissioned an eighth season of its biggest ever show, The Walking Dead, whose seventh run debuts this Sunday. Once again, Fox Networks Group has taken rights to season eight in 125 territories.