Fiction
Endemol to make a show for China
MUMBAI: Shanghai Media Group’s Entertainment Channel has ordered a first series of Endemol Argentina’s obstacle based game show XXS.
The 10 part series will broadcast in peak time and will be in production over the next two months.
Zhejiang Satellite TV has commissioned two 12-episode seasons of Endemol’s stunt based format 101 Ways to Leave a Game Show. The first series launched on the channel in prime time earlier in the year and the second season will now broadcast later in 2012.
Both programmes are being produced by Endemol at the company’s international production hubs outside Buenos Aires, with contestants from China being flown in to compete. Endemol Argentina is handling production in association with Endemol Asia and the broadcasters of each series.
Endemol Asia CEO Arjen van Mierlo said, “These are the first formats to be produced for Chinese broadcasters at our production hubs in Argentina. Both are epic shows with incredible stunts and obstacles, all staged on giant sets. Endemol’s international hub model has made it possible for us to bring these formats to China and we are thrilled to have had them commissioned by SMG and Zhejiang Satellite TV.”
XXS was created by Endemol Argentina and features families competing for a cash prize by taking on an larger-than-life obstacle course set in a giant house. Filled with objects that are 100 times bigger than they are, the families must complete the course in the quickest time in order to win the prize.
‘101 Ways to Leave a Gameshow‘, which was developed by Endemol’s UK and USA creative teams, sees loosing contestants ejected from the show…literally. From human cannon and catapults to bungee cords and parachute jumps, the only thing the stunts have in common is that contestants don’t know they have lost until they’re flying through the air – and off the show.
Fiction
Banijay merges with All3Media in $6.65 billion deal
Marco Bassetti will lead the combined company as CEO
PARIS: Six years after acquiring Endemol Shine at the height of the pandemic, Banijay has struck again. The European production heavyweight is merging with All3Media in a deal that will create a television titan with $6.65 billion in revenue and redraw the contours of a fast-consolidating market.
The combined company will trade under the Banijay name and be owned 50 per cent each by Banijay Group and RedBird IMI, which acquired All3Media in 2024. The transaction is expected to close by autumn, subject to regulatory approvals.
Banijay Entertainment CEO Marco Bassetti, will take the top job at the enlarged group. All3Media CEO Jane Turton becomes deputy CEO. RedBird IMI CEO Jeff Zucker will serve as chairman.
The logic is scale. Broadcasters are commissioning less, streamers are tightening budgets and global buyers are fewer but bigger. Against that backdrop, heft matters. The merged entity will generate roughly $6.65 billion in revenues based on 2024 figures, giving it sharper elbows in rights negotiations and deeper pockets for franchise-building.
“Entrepreneurialism, ambition and creativity” remain core to Banijay’s DNA, Bassetti said, flagging plans to invest more heavily in new intellectual property, live events and emerging platforms. Turton struck a similarly bullish note, pointing to All3Media’s journey from a 2003 start-up to a global supplier of hit formats and high-end drama.
Between them, the two groups control a formidable slate. Banijay’s catalogue spans MasterChef, Big Brother, Survivor, Black Mirror, Peaky Blinders and Deal or No Deal. All3Media’s labels include Studio Lambert, producer of The Traitors and Squid Game: The Challenge; Two Brothers, behind The Tourist; and Neal Street, currently producing the forthcoming Beatles biopics directed by Sam Mendes for Sony.
The back catalogue is equally muscular. Banijay Rights holds some 220,000 hours, while All3Media International adds around 35,000 hours, forming one of the industry’s largest libraries.
Banijay, controlled by French entrepreneur Stéphane Courbit and listed in Amsterdam, counts more than 130 production companies across 25 territories. All3Media operates over 40 labels, with strong positions in the UK, US and Germany. The enlarged group will also lean into live entertainment, building on Banijay’s Balich Wonder Studio, which produced the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, and the Independents.
The deal marks a shift in tone. As recently as October, Bassetti suggested that mergers and acquisitions were not a priority. But the drumbeat of consolidation has grown louder. Mediawan has moved for Peter Chernin’s North Road. David Ellison’s Paramount has agreed to a $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros, with plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount plus. ITV has explored selling its media and entertainment arm to Comcast-owned Sky, though talks have reportedly slowed.
