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FremantleMedia COO Gary Carter Resigns

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Friday June 1, 2012 @ 7:15am PDTTags: FremantleMedia
Nellie Andreeva

In a fallout from last month’s announcement that FremantleMedia North America CEO Cecile Frot-Coutaz will replace Tony Cohen as CEO of parent company FremantleMedia, FremntleMedia’s COO Gary Carter has resigned. Carter, who has worked for FremantleMedia since 2005, had been widely tipped for the CEO job. He will now help with the transition to the new CEO before leaving at the end of the year. Carter oversees FremantleMedia’s European operations; serves as the chief creative officer of FMX, the company’s experimental cross-platform division; and heads Creative Networks, which consists of FremantleMedia’s Worldwide Drama and Worldwide Entertainment departments. “Since joining FremantleMedia, I have been fortunate enough to experience many parts of this company, but believe that it is now time for me to seek out new experiences,” he said in a statement. Carter joined FremantleMedia Worldwide Entertainment in January 2005, having been a consultant for the company since August 2003. Before that, Carter was executive director of program affairs for Endemol.

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FremantleMedia Signs First-Look Deal With Barry Josephson

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday May 22, 2012 @ 10:42am PDTTags: Barry Josephson, Big Deals TV, FremantleMedia
Nellie Andreeva

Barry Josephson FremantleEXCLUSIVE: As part of FremantleMedia Enterprises’ efforts to beef up its scripted portfolio, the company has signed a first-look deal with film and TV producer Barry Josephson’s production company, Josephson Entertainment. As part of the deal, Josephson Entertainment has hired a TV development executive: Disney Channel’s Tia Maggini is joining as VP for Television. She will focus on developing new drama projects for U.S. cable networks and the global marketplace, working alongside Jeff Tahler, FME’s SVP Global Content, and Tony Optican, SVP Scripted Programming for FremantleMedia North America. Josephson is already in business with Fremantle — the two are producing a couple of projects together, including sci-fi action drama The Dover Agenda, a sci-fi thriller from writer Brett Conrad (Sons Of Anarchy), which is in development at Syfy. “U.S. cable drama is now the most consistently compelling content anywhere on television,” said David Ellender, Global CEO of FME. “Having identified the opportunities that exist on these networks, FME is partnering with the industry’s most prominent talent in order to help create high-quality dramas that not only work for U.S. audiences but which also have worldwide appeal.” FremantleMedia has first-look deals with Mike Tollin’s Tollin Prods and Pukeko, the TV division of Richard Taylor’s Weta Workshop. Read More »

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Fremantle, Justin Bodle Set ‘Fire Of London’ Under New First-Look: MIPTV

By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor | Sunday April 1, 2012 @ 6:44am PDTTags: FremantleMedia

Sunday 1st April, 2012 – FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) has announced at MIPTV that it has entered into a major first-look deal with internationally-acclaimed producer Justin Bodle, to develop and globally distribute ambitious new dramas, mini-series and movies for television.

Today’s deal will see FME and Bodle develop and produce an initial slate of four blockbuster dramas, the first of which – Fire of London (w/t) – is an epic four hour television mini-series which dramatises the terrifying effects on the families, politicians and people living in London and questions how the world would react were the legendary events of 1666 to repeat themselves in the new millennium.

Bodle has created such impressive, premium slate drama series as The Day of the Triffids, Flood, Colditz, Archangel, Crusoe, Ice and

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Will Bertelsmann At Long Last Go Public?

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Wednesday March 28, 2012 @ 8:35am PDTTags: FremantleMedia, RTL

It sure looks like it. Thomas Rabe, who became CEO of Europe’s largest media company in January, said today that an IPO is one option to help “reshape Bertelsmann over the next five to ten years” — especially to fuel investments … Read More »

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Hulu Signs International Distribution Pact With FremantleMedia Enterprises

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Sunday March 11, 2012 @ 5:31pm PDTTags: FremantleMedia, Hulu, Morgan Spurlock
Nellie Andreeva

Hulu Morgan SpurlockHulu’s original series are hitting the international marketplace. FremantleMedia Enterprises has signed a first-look deal with Hulu for international distribution rights to the online video service’s original programming, the first such pact for an online video company. … Read More »

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Fremantle Hires Holly Hines As VP Scripted

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday March 7, 2012 @ 9:51am PSTTags: American Idol, FremantleMedia, The X Factor
Nellie Andreeva

Holly Hines FremantleMediaAmerican Idol and The X Factor producer FremantleMedia North America is beefing up its scripted development team with the hire of Holly Hines as VP Scripted Development. In the newly created position, Hines will be involved in developing … Read More »

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Google Wrapping Up Deals To Launch 25+ Pro-Produced YouTube Channels For January

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Friday October 14, 2011 @ 1:02pm PDTTags: Berman/Braun, FremantleMedia, Google, Larry Page, Warner Bros, YouTube

EXCLUSIVE: I’ve learned that Google has put Hollywood on notice to keep mum as it prepares to announce its big plan to redefine YouTube  with 25 or so channels that will offer professionally produced news, information and entertainment. Google plans to … Read More »

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UPDATED: ‘American Idol’ Creator Simon Fuller Sues Fox & Fremantle Over ‘X Factor’

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Wednesday July 20, 2011 @ 1:15pm PDTTags: American Idol, Fox, FremantleMedia, Lawsuit, Simon Fuller, X Factor
Nellie Andreeva

2ND UPDATE 1:15 PM: Simon Fuller’s legal battle with Fox and FremantleMedia is quickly turning nasty, with the two sides throwing salvos at each other. Would they be able to bury the hatchet and maintain a decent working relationship on the upcoming 11th season of American Idol while the legal … Read More »

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Will ‘Cars’ Move More Merchandise Than ‘Toy Story 3′? Either Way, Disney Will Remain The World’s No. 1 Licensor

By DAVID LIEBERMAN, Executive Editor | Tuesday May 17, 2011 @ 8:17pm PDTTags: 20th Century Fox, Cars 2, Cartoon Network, Disney, FremantleMedia, Green Lantern, Harry Potter, Lucasfilm, Marvel Studios, Merchandise, Simon Cowell, Star Wars, The X Factor

Consumers worldwide spent $2.4 billion last year on merchandise related to Toy Story 3, helping Disney to easily reclaim the No. 1 position on License! Global magazine’s annual tally of the top sellers of stuff emblazoned with trademarked characters and … Read More »

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FremantleMedia CEO: ‘American Idol’ Will Get “Higher Ratings Than Ever” This Season

By THE DEADLINE TEAM | Monday April 4, 2011 @ 7:15am PDTTags: FremantleMedia, MIPTV

Kate Bulkley is covering MIPTV at Cannes for Deadline.

Speaking at MIPTV in Cannes, FremantleMedia’s CEO Tony Cohen said the company is focusing on its “existing franchises” like X Factor, Idol and Got Talent. He was bullish on the revamped American Idol, predicting that in its 10th season will … Read More »

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PMK*BNC To Rep Simon Cowell, ‘X Factor’

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday February 14, 2011 @ 3:58pm PSTTags: FremantleMedia, PMK*BNC, Simon Cowell, The X Factor, TV
Nellie Andreeva

Simon Cowell has picked a PR agency to represent him and his upcoming Fox reality series The X Factor, signing with PMK*BNC. The bi-coastal PR agency’s chairman and CEO Cindi Berger will run the account, with PMK*BNC’s talent, TV and … Read More »

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Simon’s Next Show Won’t Be Talent Search

By TIM ADLER in London | Thursday October 7, 2010 @ 1:52am PDTTags: Ellis Watson Syco, FremantleMedia, ITV, RTL, Simon Cowell, Syco, TV, UK TV

I’m told that ITV is still discussing this 3rd show with Syco, which it plans to make after X Factor launches in the U.S. next Fall. The broadcaster hasn’t said yes to it yet. But Ellis Watson, managing director of Simon Cowell’s UK production company Syco, says the next show after Got Talent and X Factor won’t be a talent search. And it will almost certainly be made first by RTL’s production company FremantleMedia Read More »

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JENNIFER LOPEZ IS NEW ‘IDOL’ JUDGE! Closed Deal This Week; Replaces Ellen Who Wanted Out of Contract: “It’s Not Been Fun”

By NIKKI FINKE AND NELLIE ANDREEVA | Thursday July 29, 2010 @ 6:30pm PDTTags: American Idol, American Idol Judges, Ellen DeGeneres, Elton John, Fox American Idol, FremantleMedia, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Lopez American idol, Kara DioGuardi, Nigel Lythgoe, Nigel Lythgoe American Idol, Simon Cowell American Idol, Steven Tyler, TV, Unscripted TV

EXCLUSIVE UPDATE 6:30 PM: We’ve just learned the backstory of how Ellen DeGeneres bowed out of American Idol and who will be the new judge taking her place. It’s Jennifer Lopez, JENNIFER LOPEZ 2whose singing and acting career has been on the skids after her recent movie failed at the box office in the spring and she was dropped by her record company Sony Music Epic Records this past winter. We hear her manager Benny Medina (whom she once fired) orchestrated the meeting with the American Idol producers a month ago, and negotiations have been ongoing ever since. We’ve learned a deal was closed earlier this week under the utmost secrecy. Today’s news came shortly after Nigel Lythgoe returned to Idol as an executive producer. He has vowed to shake up the show’s team of judges in the wake of the departure of Simon Cowell, publicly stating that he always thought a panel of three and not 4 made the most sense.

Still to be decided is who will replace Simon Cowell. Everyone associated with the show wants Elton John, but we hear he’s asking for too much money and has too many touring commitments he can’t get out of. (Denials That Justin Or Elton Judging ‘Idol’) 2ND UPDATE: Tonight, unconfirmed reports say Idol has offered Cowell’s judge seat to Steven Tyler. 3RD UPDATE: And another unconfirmed report claimed judge Kara DioGuardi has been fired to bring the panel count down to just 3, not 4.

As for Ellen Degeneres, we’re told she wanted off the show two months ago and complained that Idol producers “couldn’t control Cowell”, one insider tells us. Least of all Cecile Frot-Coutaz, the CEO of FremantleMedia North America. “Cecile is doing X Factor with Simon, so she’s in his back pocket.” DeGeneres and her reps went in to to see Fox Broadcasting’s Entertainment Chairman Peter Rice and Alternative TV President Mike Darnell and asked to be let out of the year left on her contract. “She’s not comfortable. She’s not happy. It’s not been fun,” Fox was told.  But Rice and Darnell responded that, with Cowell leaving, “We can’t let you out now because it would be bad for our franchise. Give us a chance to figure out who we could get.” In the end, all the show’s producers – Fox, Fremantle, and 19 Entertainment – worked it out. “Peter Rice was awesome,” an insider tells us. “Ellen is thrilled and relieved.” We’ve learned that serious conversations took place between Idol and Jessica Simpson to replace Ellen. But once Jennifer Lopez was locked in this week, the DeGeneres announcement went out. Read More »

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Nigel Lythgoe Returns to ‘Idol’ As EP

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Monday July 26, 2010 @ 5:17pm PDTTags: 19 Entertainment, American Idol, American Idol Judges, American Idol Season 10, Executive Producer Nigel Lythgoe, Fox American Idol, FremantleMedia, Nigel Lythgoe, Reality TV, Simon Cowell American Idol
Nellie Andreeva

He was the first major member of the American idol team to depart the show. Now former executive producer Nigel Lythgoe is finalizing a deal to return for the upcoming 10th season as the top-rated reality series is looking to … Read More »

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Game Show ‘Hole In The Wall’ Back With Family Version On Cartoon Network

By NELLIE ANDREEVA | Tuesday July 20, 2010 @ 10:27am PDTTags: Cable TV, Cartoon Network, FremantleMedia, Game Show, Hole in the Wall
Nellie Andreeva

FremantleMedia’s game show Hole in the Wall is back in a new family format on a new net, Cartoon Network. Cartoon has ordered 10 episodes of the show based on a Japanese format in which players must contort themselves to fit through cutouts in a large Styrofoam wall moving towards … Read More »

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