Fiction
Peninsula Pictures eyes new genres for digital foray
MUMBAI: Peninsula Pictures, the production house known for its shows like Vishkanya, Dev Anand, Shree Krishna, Mayavi Maling and Aladdin has decided to foray into the digital world, with the intent of providing quality content. One of the key reasons for entering digital is also to retain show IPs.
Apart from its expertise in genres like mythology and fantasy, the production house has plans to experiment with a romantic thriller, crime, comedy and paranormal genres among others for its new web series. As far as television is concerned, it has plans to produce shows in genres like contemporary love story, thriller, etc.
The production house, led by Nissar Parvej and Alind Srivastava, highlighted that the year 2018 was a bittersweet one. Parvej said that Shree Krishna has done quite well in the industry and has completed 400 episodes. Mayavi Maling was yet another show produced for Star Bharat that didn’t garner much attention from viewers but it didn’t let them down. Aladdin, a period fantasy for Sony Sab, has already made an entry in the space, while Alibaba for Colors and two other shows are in the pipeline to enter the TV space. It also has plans to produce shows for the regional segment.
Talking about the challenges that they have faced, Srivastava said, “Detective shows take time for the audiences to pick up. The other challenge was streamlining our studio which was launched last year. In 2018, there were a lot of shows that were VFX. Now, we will be able to take more VFX-based shows. We also want it to become one of our strengths and this does not mean that we just want to stick to VFX shows.”
Parvej further added that they don’t want to pick up too much work so that they can focus on quality. Srivastava said that there was a wave of shows like Daayan, Chudail that were trendy in 2018. Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah is the show that is still working well with the audience. “One should know that when you are making a show, you are making it for the audience, so whatever relates to them should be made and should follow certain basics like touching the emotional core of it,” he said.
Talking about OTT, Parvej said that the money is definitely more in the OTT space, but according to him, that does not make TV insecure. However, it will take 4-5 years for OTT to settle. He feels that show production cost on TV will go down because of dipping advertising money.
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.
