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Global Showbiz Briefs: BBC Promotes Mosey, New MD At FremantleMedia Sweden

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Wednesday May 8, 2013 @ 9:00pm PDTTags: BBC, FremantleMedia, Tony Hall

Mosey Upped To Editorial Director At BBC

The BBC has appointed Roger Mosey as editorial director. He’ll oversee the BBC’s editorial standards and handle major editorial issues as they arise in the new role that’s being created following a series of scandals that have hit the pubcaster in the past several months. Said BBC director general Tony Hall, “It is crucial that the BBC dedicates the right amount of time, skill and expertise to addressing the myriad of editorial challenges that we face across the BBC’s output.” Mosey was instrumental in the BBC’s coverage of the London Olympics last year and also will be charged with overseeing the planning of significant pan-BBC events.

Fremantle Sweden Taps Kalsson-Lamm As Managing Director

FremantleMedia has named Magnus Karlsson-Lamm as managing director of its Swedish production arm, FremantleMedia Sweden AB. He will start the job in September and be responsible for managing all development and production operations in Sweden. The exec previously was acting head of entertainment and deputy head of the program department at Swedish broadcaster TV4. He began his career as a host for Sweden’s SVT and also has been an executive producer on the Swedish versions of the Idol and Let’s Dance formats.

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Roland Emmerich Teams On Lawrence Of Arabia Mini With Fremantle, Marc Frydman

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday April 30, 2013 @ 2:21am PDTTags: Big Deals TV, FremantleMedia, Lawrence Of Arabia, Roland Emmerich

FremantleMedia International is continuing its push into event drama with a six-hour miniseries based on the true story of T.E. Lawrence, aka Lawrence Of Arabia. Roland Emmerich will produce with Marc Frydman. Author Michael Korda, … Read More »

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MIPTV Briefs: ITV Studios Nabs ‘Poirot’ Pre-Sales; Fremantle Shops ‘Blake’s 7′; KidsCo Acquires ‘Matt Hatter Chronicles’; Venevision International & More

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday April 9, 2013 @ 1:25am PDTTags: Big Deals TV, FremantleMedia, ITV Studios Global Entertainment, MIPTV, Oxygen Media

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ITV Studios Global Entertainment has secured pre-sales for the 13th and final series of ITV Studios’ iconic detective drama Agatha Christie’s Poirot. Based on crime writer Agatha Christie’s famous novels, series 13 of Poirot has been acquired by eight broadcasters worldwide: TMC (France), ABC (Australia), Prime (New Zealand), Chungwa (Taiwan), Latvian Television, RTV (Slovenia), HRT (Croatia), Sanoma (Hungary) and Digiturk (Turkey). WGBH in the US will co- produce and air two of the Poirot films – The Big Four and Dead Man’s Folly. The deals were brokered by David Wilcox, VP North West Cluster; Jennifer Ebell, VP South East Cluster; Nancy Wang, Senior Sales Executive, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan; Dan Edwards, Senior Sales Executive, Australia and Jemma Losh, Sales Executive, New Zealand for ITV Studios Global Entertainment. Read More »

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MIPTV Briefs: Fremantle & ‘Half The Sky’; HBO Europe’s ‘Burning Bush’; Content TV’s ‘Facing The Atlantic’

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Sunday April 7, 2013 @ 7:59am PDTTags: FremantleMedia, HBO Europe, MIPTV

FremantleMedia has acquired global distribution rights to the follow-up to Half The Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity. Inspired by the books of Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, the first series followed the authors and a host of celebrity advocates on a journey across 10 countries to showcase stories of female resilience in the face of adversity. The new untitled series will be set in the Americas and airs in the U.S. on PBS in late 2014. Maro Chermayeff, Jamie Gordon, Jeff Dupre, Mira Chang and Joshua Bennett are exec producing the program from Show of Force Productions.

Germany’s Beta Film will handle international sales on HBO Europe’s three-part mini The Burning Bush. Directed by Agnieszka Holland and based on real events, the series follows the plight of Jan Palach, who set himself on fire in protest of the Soviet occupation of Prague in 1969, and his family’s legal fight to clear his name. HBO Europe’s most ambitious project to date, the series had a successful rollout across Europe this year. It’s based on a script by Stephen Hulik and was produced by HBO Europe’s Antony Root and Tereza Polachova and Nutproducke’s Tomas Hruby and Pavla Kubeckova. Read More »

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MIPTV Briefs: FremantleMedia, Miramax, Red Arrow International

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday April 2, 2013 @ 10:58am PDTTags: FremantleMedia, MIPTV, Miramax

FremantleMedia is launching a new slate of scripted titles at Mip-TV which kicks off next week in Cannes, France. Among them are Wentworth, the reimagining of Prisoner Cell Block H, and The Making Of A Lady, from Runaway Fridge. Wentworth is a 10-part FremantleMedia Australia production that will premiere on Oz’s Foxtel in May. Event thriller Lady stars Linus Roache, Joanna Lumley and Lydia Wilson and is based on The Making Of A Marchioness by Frances Hodgson Burnett. Read More »

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Bertelsmann Eyes $3.9B In Acquisitions Over Next Three Years, But No IPO

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday March 26, 2013 @ 9:18am PDTTags: Bertelsmann, FremantleMedia, RTL

As it seeks to expand, Europe’s biggest media company, Bertelsmann, plans to spend as much as 3B euros ($3.9B) on acquisitions over the next three years, a move that reflects the current culture of increased media M&A activity in Europe. The company recently said it would reduce its stake in broadcasting giant and FremantleMedia owner the RTL Group, potentially raising about $2B. CEO Thomas Rabe said today that those proceeds coupled with about 500M euros in annual net cash flow would help fund individual deals worth “a couple hundred millions of euros,” according to Bloomberg. Bertelsmann is looking to expand into digital content and emerging markets and Rabe said, “It is our clear objective to grow the company in the next couple of years. Assuming a little bit of tailwind from a recovery in Europe, we expect to grow to 17B euros this year and 18B euros in the next.” An IPO, however, is “off the table for the foreseeable future.” Read More »

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FremantleMedia Names Keith Hindle CEO Of Digital & Branded Entertainment

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday March 5, 2013 @ 4:16am PSTTags: FremantleMedia

LONDON, 5 March 2013: FremantleMedia, one of the largest creators, producers and distributors of television brands in the world, today announced the appointment of Keith Hindle as CEO of its newly created Digital & Branded Entertainment division. Based in New York, Hindle will craft and lead the digital and branded entertainment strategy for FremantleMedia around the world, reporting to FremantleMedia CEO Cecile Frot-Coutaz and sitting on the company’s Operating Board.

In his new role, Hindle, who was formerly CEO, Americas at FremantleMedia’s Enterprises arm, will steer and oversee FremantleMedia’s growing multi-platform business worldwide, with functional responsibility for all digital, sponsorship, social media and YouTube activity, including the company’s original content channels, along with apps, second-screen extensions and online gaming. Hindle will work closely with digital and sponsorship teams in FremantleMedia’s local territories, and will also sit on the Operating Boards of FremantleMedia’s gaming company Ludia and its transmedia company @radical.media.

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Global Showbiz Briefs: Savile Claims Hit BBC, Sony TV In Russia, TLC’s ‘Bizarre ER’, Fremantle’s ‘Family Harmony’ And More

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday February 13, 2013 @ 9:37pm PSTTags: BBC, FremantleMedia, Global Showbiz Briefs, Jimmy Savile, Phone-Hacking Scandal, Sony Pictures TV, TLC

BBC Hit With Civil Claims In Jimmy Savile Scandal
A lawyer acting on behalf of 31 victims of the late Jimmy Savile has lodged civil claims for compensation in the high court against the disgraced host’s estate and the BBC over allegations of sexual abuse. Attorney Alan Collins told The Guardian that all claims are against Savile’s estate with “seven or eight” against the BBC itself, which the suits allege has “vicarious liability” in the case. Another lawyer working on behalf of a further 62 victims told Bloomberg  that the action was premature, because parties involved had agreed to wait for the results of the police investigation into Savile. “We do not believe the commencement of litigation at this stage to be either necessary or in our clients’ best interest,” she said. – Joe Utichi
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Global Showbiz Briefs: Oz UltraViolet, ‘Argo’ In Iran, ‘Cavegirl’, Fremantle

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Friday February 1, 2013 @ 10:51pm PSTTags: Arclight Films, Argo, FremantleMedia, UltraViolet

Australia Distribs Confident Of Fast Take-off For UltraViolet
The UltraViolet format launches in Australia on May 1, a joint effort from the majors and independent distributors which they are confident will avoid the pitfalls which plagued the technology’s introduction in the U.S. Key elements of the Australian launch include a unified marketing campaign, the participation of all distributors except Disney, which has yet to join the UV bandwagon, and the support of dominant retail chains, home entertainment retailers and digital download services. The Oz-based working group that includes members of the Digital Entertainment Content Ecosystem Universal, Sony, Fox, Warner, Paramount, Roadshow and Hopscotch eOne, predicts 300,000 Australian homes will sign up for UV accounts by October 31. Australia still has a very healthy DVD rental business, partly because pay-TV penetration is a relatively low 30%, Netflix and Hulu haven’t entered the market and the SVOD business is tiny. U.S. and Australian companies that supply UV back-end services have been pitching the mass merchandisers. Distributors haven’t announced titles for the May launch. The primary target of the marketing campaigns will be families and people aged 25-45, rather than early adopters regarded as less receptive to UV. Distributors hope the ease and convenience of downloading films to multiple devices via UV will reduce piracy. – Don Groves
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Mattel Rebooting ‘Max Steel’ Property With New Animated TV Series

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Monday January 28, 2013 @ 6:11am PSTTags: FremantleMedia, Mattel

A Max Steel movie still hasn’t gotten off the ground, but the brand is making a comeback. Mattel is set to relaunch the action property in March with a 26-episode animated series premiering in the U.S. on Disney XD, and a worldwide rollout in over 100 territories. Mattel is co-producing with FremantleMedia Enterprises which will handle overseas rights. The Max Steel line of action figures was originally introduced in the U.S. in 1999, but Mattel pulled back on the brand domestically following 9/11, EVP for global brands, Tim Kiplin, told the NYT. It nevertheless became a huge hit in Latin America and the toymaker now sees an opportunity to establish a major new franchise grounded in multimedia. The reboot will include the Disney TV series, a live-action short movie, an online content hub, mobile games, graphic novels, toys and other products. The original concept of the brand has also been tweaked to make Max younger and more relatable to boys who see the teen hero and his alien companion, Steel, combine their turbo energy and heightened intellect to create the ultimate superhero. If the reboot clicks, perhaps it will light a fire under the bigscreen version that was originally set up at Paramount in 2009. Hit the jump for Mattel’s press release: Read More »

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FremantleMedia Appoints Sangeeta Desai To COO/CFO Post

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Tuesday January 15, 2013 @ 3:28am PSTTags: Big Deals TV, FremantleMedia

American Idol and X Factor producer FremantleMedia has named former HIT Entertainment COO Sangeeta Desai to the combined roles of COO and CFO with immediate effect. The exec will be based in London and report to Fremantle CEO … Read More »

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FremantleMedia & Craig Pearce To Develop Joan Of Arc Novel ‘The Maid’ Into TV Series

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday December 17, 2012 @ 9:41am PSTTags: Craig Pearce, FremantleMedia
Nellie Andreeva

December 17, 2012 – FremantleMedia has finalized a deal with writer Craig Pearce to develop the New York Times bestseller The Maid into a television drama series for international audiences. The as yet untitled series will be executive

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Exclusive Media Forms Television Division, Enters First-Look With FremantleMedia

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Thursday December 13, 2012 @ 3:16am PSTTags: Exclusive Media, FremantleMedia

LONDON, December 13 2012 Exclusive Media, the filmed entertainment company based in Los Angeles and London, announced today that it has established a television division and inked a global first look development and distribution deal with FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME).

Exclusive Media Television (EMTV) will be run by Exclusive Media Vice Chairman and Hammer President Simon Oakes, and is already in active development on a number of high profile projects, which will be announced in due course.

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Marshall Herskovitz To Write And Produce Drama About Rise Of German Nazis For FremantleMedia Based On Book ‘Hitlerland’

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday December 3, 2012 @ 5:00pm PSTTags: Big Deals TV, FremantleMedia, Marshall Herskovitz
Nellie Andreeva

EXCLUSIVE: In one of FremantleMedia‘s highest-profile scripted projects to date, the American Idol and X Factor producer has teamed with veteran feature and TV writer/producer Marshall Herskovitz for a drama series project inspired by the book Hitlerland by Andrew Nagorski published earlier this year. Herskovitz will write the adaptation and executive produce with producer/manager Alan Gasmer (Vikings).

The series is set in 1920s and ’30s Berlin, an electrifying, chaotic city at the forefront of literature, art and science. The book’s accounts of American diplomats and correspondents who witnessed Hitler and the Nazis’ rise to power will be woven into a fictional tapestry of political intrigue, pursuit of power, and personal danger — set against the backdrop of the most sexually and artistically liberated city in the world. “Berlin during the 1920s and ’30s was so alive, so filled with promise, so incredibly modern — even today, much of what we think of as new or avant-garde was created then,” Herskovitz said. “And it’s equally important — in light of the dark forces in our world today — to understand how a group like the Nazis ever came to power.” Read More »

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FremantleMedia Enterprises Partners With Martha Stewart For Lifestyle Programming

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Thursday October 25, 2012 @ 7:11am PDTTags: Big Deals TV, FremantleMedia, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
Nellie Andreeva

FremantleMedia Enterprises and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia have entered a first-look agreement to develop television and digital video programming featuring the next generation of lifestyle talent across food, fashion, home, gardening and more, which will be produced under … Read More »

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Mipcom: FremantleMedia To Distribute Vuguru Content Outside North America

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Monday October 8, 2012 @ 12:08am PDTTags: FremantleMedia, Michael Eisner, Vuguru

Fremantle To Distribute Vuguru's Content Outside North AmericaFremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) and Vuguru LLC today announce a major new first-look deal for international rights to the independent studio’s original commission programming. The deal will see FME distribute Vuguru original content across all digital, linear and home entertainment platforms outside North America from 2013, further diversifying FME’s catalogue of high-quality, distinctive scripted programming and forging a new partnership between one of the most exciting content producers and one of the most powerful content distributors in the industry.

Fremantle To Distribute Vuguru's Content Outside North AmericaAn independent multi-platform studio, Vuguru was founded in 2006 by former Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Michael Eisner and is also backed by Rogers Media of Canada In the intervening years it has developed and financed premium, award winning and immensely popular scripted multiplatform titles that have been distributed across online, mobile, and linear television platforms in over 40 countries around the world, attracting global audiences and global advertisers.

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Global Showbiz: FremantleMedia Names Worldwide Drama Head, Doha Film Institute Appoints CEO, UK TV Tax Credit

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Wednesday October 3, 2012 @ 11:00pm PDTTags: FremantleMedia

FremantleMedia’s Donna Wiffen To Head Worldwide Drama
Just ahead of the Mipcom TV market in Cannes next week, FremantleMedia has promoted Donna Wiffen to head of worldwide drama. The move frees up Claire Tavernier, previously senior executive VP of FMX and worldwide drama, to focus solely on FMX, the company’s new media division. Wiffen will support drama strategy and production including the development, acquisition and roll-out of all scripted formats. She was formerly SVP production and network for drama. FremantleMedia is bringing US dramas to Cannes next week including political series Battleground, the first original drama from Hulu that the company is offering as part of their first-look deal. The 13 half hours are exec produced by JD Walsh, Hagai Shaham and Marc Webb. Read More »

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Random House Signs First-Look Deal With FremantleMedia, Starts Random House TV

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday July 25, 2012 @ 9:32am PDTTags: Big Deals TV, FremantleMedia, Random House
Nellie Andreeva

Jeffrey Levine Random House TelevisionAmerican Idol producer FremantleMedia and Random House Inc, the U.S. division of trade-book publisher Random House, have partnered to develop scripted television programming for the U.S. and international markets based on the fiction and nonfiction books published by Random House’s imprints in North America and internationally. As part of the first-look deal, Random House Studio, the publisher’s rebranded entertainment division led by president Peter Gethers, is launching new division Random House Television. It will work together with Random House’s editors and publishers, and their authors’ agents, to acquire rights for broadcast network, cable, and premium television scripted projects and will collaborate with Random House authors to develop original scripted television properties. Both FremantleMedia and Random House are Bertelsmann AG companies. Read More »

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SyFy Renews ‘Total Blackout’ For 16 Additional Episodes

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Saturday July 7, 2012 @ 12:17pm PDTTags: FremantleMedia, Syfy

Syfy’s Total Blackout has been renewed for 16 episodes. The first eight of the new episodes will launch Tuesday, November 13, the network confirmed. The game show places competing participants in challenging situations in complete darkness but … Read More »

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