I N T E R N A T I O N A L www.V i deoAge.org THE BUSINESS JOURNAL OF FILM, BROADCASTING, STREAMING, PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION October 2022 - VOL. 42 NO. 6 - $9.75 VISIT US P-1.K11 (Continued on Page 32) There have been a few changes to the TV landscape since the last MIPCOM, one of them being the surprising rise in Asian content across American TV screens in particular, and elsewhere in general, and it’s not just due to the success of Squid Game or K-Pop. That said, Squid’s Emmy nominations and two wins certainly made a further statement that good content with global appeal doesn’t just come from the U.S. or Europe. The fact that Asian TV formats have spawned hit shows such as The Masked Singer and I Can See Your Voice is further testament to South Korean TV savvy, while Japan’s U.S. Broadcast Nets Step Lightly Post Pandemic My 2¢: The new world order is black-n-white, but reads differently Programming trends: What the world will be watching on TV Quo Vadis NATPE? New venue brings praise, questions Canadian channels are fighting for ethnic television respect Page 38 Page 24 Page 20 Page 16 It’s that time of year again — the kids are back in school, pumpkin spice is on nearly every menu, and the big five U.S. broadcast TV networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, and The CW) have rolled out their best bets for the 2022-2023 fall premiere season. As the world forges its way into a new normal on the heels of a global pandemic, so too does pilot season, with 23 shows picked up by the major U.S. broadcast nets. But which series will have the staying power to stick around for a second season remains to be seen. The networks — or the TV bigwigs behind them — seem to be playing it safe this premiere The Mother of All Marts Finds Prodigal Kids (Continued on Page 28) The Pull of Asian TV In The U.S. and Europe: Overview The U.S. studios are back en masse at this year’s MIPCOM (recently renamed MIPCOM CANNES), delighting organizer RX France, as well as many buyers. Laura Ni Cheallaigh, commissioning editor in charge of Acquisitions at TG4 Ireland, is very enthusiastic about the return of the U.S. majors at MIPCOM. She also (Continued on Page 34) NHK World is making inroads into LATAM with its new series Teen Regime. Hardly surprising then, that content providers from Asia and companies dealing with Asian TV content will be making their presence felt even more in the Palais and its environs during the
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Cover Stories We live in a world in which shades of gray no longer exist. These days, everything is black or white. And television personifies and amplifies this. Page 38 News The pull of Asian TV in the U.S. and in Europe. An overview MIPCOM: The mother of all TV markets finds its prodigal children The new TV season: U.S. broadcast networks step lightly post pandemic 6. World: Cape Town, Biarritz, New York City 16. Ethnic broadcaster denounces Canada’s legislative indifference 24. Programming trends around the world. What audiences will be watching on TV 12. Book Review: Did Thomas Edison kill the (true) inventor of the motion picture? 20. Quo Vadis NATPE? Global mart faces universal challenges 22. Mega-mergers being challenged with an eye toward monopolies 26. A review of LATAM TV consumption and mart participation 36. Forget the best airfare, let’s talk the best seat. Plus, calendar of industry events MAIN OFFICES 216 EAST 75TH STREET NEW YORK, NY 10021 TEL: (212) 288-3933 WWW.VIDEOAGEINTERNATIONAL.COM WWW.VIDEOAGE.ORG P.O. BOX 25282 LOS ANGELES, CA 90025 VIALE ABRUZZI 30 20131 MILAN, ITALY EDITOR-in-CHIEF DOM SERAFINI EDITORIAL TEAM SARA ALESSI (NY) BILL BRIOUX (CANADA) ENZO CHIARULLO (ITALY) LEAH HOCHBAUM ROSNER (NY) SUSAN HORNIK (L.A.) CAROLINE INTERTAGLIA (FRANCE) OMAR MENDEZ (ARGENTINA) LUIS POLANCO (NY) MIKE REYNOLDS (L.A.) MARIA ZUPPELLO (BRAZIL) PUBLISHER MONICA GORGHETTO BUSINESS OFFICE LEN FINKEL LEGAL OFFICE STEVE SCHIFFMAN WEB MANAGER BRUNO MARRACINO DESIGN/LAYOUT CLAUDIO MATTIONI, CARMINE RASPAOLO VIDEO AGE INTERNATIONAL (ISSN 0278-5013 USPS 601-230) IS PUBLISHED SEVEN TIMES A YEAR,. PLUS DAILIES, BY TV TRADE MEDIA, INC. © TV TRADE MEDIA INC. 2022. THE ENTIRE CONTENTS OF VIDEO AGE INTERNATIONAL ARE PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT IN THE U.S., U.K., AND ALL COUNTRIES SIGNATORY TO THE BERNE CONVENTIO AND THE PAN-AMERICAN CONVENTION. SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO VIDEO AGE INTERNATIONAL, 216 EAST 75TH STREET, SUITE 1W, NEW YORK, NY 10021, U.S.A. PURSUANT TO THE U.S. COPYRIGHTS ACT OF 1976, THE RIGHTS OF ALL CONTENT DONE ON ASSIGNMENT FOR ALL VIDEOAGE PUBLICATIONS ARE HELD BY THE PUBLISHER OF VIDEOAGE, WHICH COMMISSIONED THEM Features
6 World V I D E O A G E October 2022 U.S. And now BET wants two more movies with the same cast as a continuation of the story. Billy and I saw different production companies [at MIP Africa], as well as talked with the major channels in South Africa to buy some of their content for our U.S. platforms. We were very busy with very good meetings.” A buyer from South African broadcaster SABC told VideoAge informant that the market was “interesting.” She also noted that there were more sellers than buyers, and that the market was small enough that one could visit all the exhibitors in just one hour. Despite all of these positive experiences, MIP Africa started off with a great potential, but seemed to fizzle out somewhere along the way, ultimately registering a smaller number of exhibitors and buyers than expected. Regardless, the market will most likely survive due to very committed organizers, who will have to figure out how to attract distributors from the U.S. and Europe. As DISCOP Johannesburg has already proved, African buyers prefer looking at hard-toreach American and European content, figuring that African programs are already easily accessible. Indeed, of the 40 exhibitors at MIP Africa, three content sales companies were from the U.S., and five were from Europe. In addition, this inaugural event was very reliant on the participation of streaming platforms, which don’t traditionally sell their shows, and usually only exhibit for promotional purposes. Another factor to consider is the big number of parallel and sideline events crammed into FAME Week, which caused the market to lose some of its focus. And finally, the late August dates fall in what is considered a low season for the southern hemisphere, a period not all that appealing for foreign visitors, especially when many potential participants would rather be taking their summer vacations. MIP Africa 2023 has been set for September 6-8. There were some good reports from the first edition of MIP Africa, which concluded on August 26, 2022 following three days of meetings. “I was booked solid for three days with all the TV and VoD buyers in many territories in the whole of Africa, but mainly South Africa”, said Lise Romanoff, managing director/ CEO, Worldwide Distribution for the Marina Del Rey, California-based Vision Films. “I am hoping they do this market again each and every year moving forward, attracting even more buyers and producers. I will surely attend again. She continued: “This was such a wonderfully managed sales market, and Cape Town is such a great location. There were only three American indie distribution companies: ACI, Vision Films, and GRB.” Chevonne O’Shaughnessy (pictured at right), president of the Van Nuys, Californiabased American Cinema International (ACI), also had a positive experience: “The market was great for both Billy Dundee of African Entertainment and ACI. Billy and I produced A Royal Surprise, our first movie in South Africa last year. We did not [pre-sell it]. We just financed it and we got lucky that the movie sold to the BET network in the MIP Africa Offered A Good Experience For Most (Continued on Page 8) C M Y CM MY CY CMY K Convention Flyer4-Junior Page.pdf 1 26-09-2022 14:43:37
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8 World V I D E O A G E October 2022 live, in-person affairs since 2019. Hailing from Italian-speaking Switzerland, RSI’s Gea Montorfani was back in Biarritz hoping to find a larger selection of dubbed titles. And TG4 Ireland’s Laura Ni Cheallaigh emphasized how the increase in buying competition and the reduced availability of U.S. content (which mostly ends up on the studios’ own streaming platforms) makes the supply of French TV fare — and European fare in general —more important. Unifrance’s Philippe Vacquié was very pleased with the turnout, considering the difficulties still existing for executives travelling from Asia. (There are sanitary restrictions, as well as some longer flight times due to the fact that many Asian airlines refuse to fly over Russian air space.) During the event, Unifrance held a press conference to release the 2021 figures for French audiovisual exports. Unifrance’s Sarah Hemar, together with CNC’s Cecile Lacoue and SEDPA’s Emmanuelle Jouanole, presented the detailed report. A total of 375.9 million euro (U.S. $380.24 million) in sales, pre-sales, and co-production investments was registered for French audiovisual programs in 2021. Sales in the drama genre were up 21.8 percent compared to 2020, while sales of animation and documentaries suffered a drop as a consequence of pandemicrelated delays. Animation remained the genre with the most exports. Western Eu-rope was still the biggest buyer of French content (with Germany, the U.K., and Italy at the top), followed by North America and Asia/Oceania. New this year was the presence of talent, part of Unifrance’s enhanced promotion strategy. A gala screening of historical series Diane de Poitiers (The King’s Favorite) saw the participation of cast members Isabelle Adjani, Hugo Becker, and Virginie Ledoyen, in addition to director and producer Josee Dayan and Passion Films’ Gaspard de Chavagnac (executive producer). Next year’s dates are set for September 3-7, 2023. Approximately 240 acquisition and programming executives, mostly from Western and Eastern Europe, attended Unifrance’s Rendez-Vous, in Biarritz, France, following a two-year COVID-related hiatus. The event was held at the Bellevue Conference Center, just like previous Rendez-Vous editions. This most recent event was the first organized by French media entity Unifrance, which absorbed original organizer TV France International during the pandemic. In Biarritz, buyers screened over 1,000 titles of French content and networked with representatives from 62 French distribution companies. The Rendez-Vous ended on September 8, after four days. In addition to buyers from Eastern Europe (with the exception of Russian companies, which were not invited), returning buyers included large contingents from Germany, Spain, and Italy, the main countries of export for French content. Many executives were particularly interested in documentaries, including Mediaset’s Giada Masina, who was glad to have the opportunity to screen new titles at the Rendez-Vous since the BBC Showcase (one of her company’s main sources of factual fare) has not yet returned to The Ups And Downs of French TV Content Sales (Continued from Page 6) (Continued on Page 10) THE GREAT WALL WITH ASH DYKES SECRETS OF THE INTERROGATION ROOM10x60’ IN-DEVELOPMENT IN-PRODUCTION Stone Joss 1x90/60’ Zig Zag Productions for www.bomanbridge.tv sales@bomanbridge.tv MIPCOM BOOTH P-1.G58 | 6x60’ 10x60’ Welcome to Football Leaks DRIVE and Wingman for
10 World V I D E O A G E October 2022 can be a challenge to pinpoint non-conflicting dates. We have consistently scheduled NAB Show New York in the third week of October. We will always do our best, with the information we have at hand, to schedule our events when they can be most effective for the industry. VA: How are you bringing station managers (or GMs) from local stations back to the NYC convention? CB: Station managers will find guidance from implementation-centric exhibits and industry experts about how they can streamline workflows, upgrade their systems, solve problems and maximize efficiency. The Experiential Zone is part of the immersive show floor experience and includes a Tech Chat stage, dedicated networking space, and a Content Theater, which will serve as the hub for keynote sessions, award ceremonies, and in-depth conversations about media trends. TVNewsCheck will present the 6th annual TV2025: Monetizing the Future. This is a unique conference gathering TV station group executives and technology partners to talk about how technology will enable emerging and developing revenue streams. Themes include Cybersecurity, NextGen TV, audience research and revenue opportunities for local media. The Cine Live Lab is a new destination on the NAB Show floor featuring daily, handson demonstrations of the latest tools and techniques in cinematic storytelling and live broadcast TV production. Sessions will cover managing cinematic multi-cam projects, audience experience goals, identifying the roles of production teammembers, as well as equipment and skillsets required of crews. VA: Is there a thematic difference between NAB Show Las Vegas (in April) and NAB New York? CB: The focus in New York is squarely on implementation — one of three dimensions that were part of the new organization and focus at the Las Vegas convention. In April we introduced four new content pillars: Create, Connect, Capitalize, and Intelligent Content. [The] NAB Show Las Vegas provides the comprehensive experience and a roadmap to the future. For two days starting on October 19, 2022, the Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Broadcasters will stage its annual NAB Show New York, smack in the middle of MIPCOM CANNES. This is unfortunate since the NAB Show attracts a good number of U.S. TV station managers and general managers who would be valuable contacts for U.S. and international TV distribution companies that like to syndicate their shows in the U.S. To address this issue, VideoAge contacted Chris Brown, EVP and managing director of Global Connections and Events at NAB (pictured at right). VideoAge: Many producers and content distributors are going to miss NAB Show New York because they will be at MIPCOM in Cannes. Is there a way for the two organizations (RX and NAB) to work out non-conflicting dates? Chris Brown: We do our best to schedule around the regular dates of other industry events. We also exchange future plans and dates with other convention organizers. Despite this, it is not always possible to avoid conflicts. Space and dates are limited commodities, and when other factors are weighed — such as national, global, and religious holidays — it The Conflicting Dates of NAB Show andMIPCOM (Continued from Page 8) SEPTEMBER 2022 JUNIOR PAGE_ 7.284”x 9.055” VIDEO AGE JR. PAGE GRB Studios www. g r b t v . c om l s a l e s@g r b t v. c om Genre: Docu-series Duration: 6 x 60’ Genre: Docu-Series Duration: 9 x 60’+ 1 x 120’ M I P C O M 2 0 2 2 S T A N D R 7 . A 1 6
AMERICAN CINEMA / AMERICAN CINEMA INSPIRES To schedule a meeting, please contact Chevonne O’Shaughnessy or Carlos Herrera at chevonne@aci-americancinema.com | carlos@aci-americancinema.com
12 Book Review V I D E O A G E October 2022 Depending on who you ask or where you are in the world, you might hear a different story about the true origins of the motion picture. In the United States, Thomas Edison is often credited with paving the path toward motion pictures with the Kinetoscope, his 1894 peep-show device. Meanwhile, in France, the brothers Auguste Marie Louis Nicolas Lumière and Louis Jean Lumière patented the Cinématographe in 1895, and they debuted their own productions, beginning with Arrivée d’un Train en Gare de la Ciotat, also in 1895. Edison and the Lumière brothers are seen as larger than life in the history of motion pictures, but what about the contributions of another Frenchman, Louis Le Prince? Author Paul Fischer explores the life and experiments of Le Prince in his new book, The Man Who Invented Motion Pictures: A True Tale of Obsession, Murder, and The Movies (416 pgs., Simon & Schuster, 2022. U.S. $28.99). Le Prince is recognized for developing an early motion-picture device that used a singlelens camera to capture a short sequence of movement. Le Prince’s groundbreaking invention was patented in early 1888, although he spent the next three years perfecting it. Just before unveiling it to the world, Le Prince vanished without a trace. His story is one of great ambition and bitter tragedy. In his book, Fischer presents a compelling read about the French artist and innovator, and dives into all available information to offer the fullest picture. Fischer is both an accomplished writer and film producer. His first book, A Kim Jong-Il Production, came out in 2015. It looks at how the former North Korean leader ordered the kidnapping of South Korean actress Choi Eun-Hee and her filmmaker ex-husband Shin Shang-Ok, and their subsequent plan of escape. His first feature screenplay, The Body, was produced as an episode of the horror anthology series Into the Dark for Hulu. Fischer has also written for several publications, including The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times. His latest book continues to see him draw on fascinating true stories from the history of cinema, while conveying the cultural and social impact that these stories have on the world at large today. Born in Metz, France, Louis Le Prince was the son of a respected upper-middle-class family. He enjoyed a well-rounded education in the arts, followed by further graduate study at the University of Leipzig. “His passion lay in the arts and, more precisely, in the intersection of arts and technology, the science of light and its interactionwith the human eye”, writes Fischer. A college friend, Jack Whitley, would invite Le Prince to Leeds, England, where he would join the Whitley family’s brass founding firm. Le Prince would also be introduced to Jack’s sister, Elizabeth Whitley, who went by Lizzie. In 1869, the two were married. There is plenty in Le Prince’s life that stands out as striking and relevant to his future. One such example comes from Le Prince’s childhood, when his father introduced him to Louis Daguerre, who was one of the fathers of early photography, having developed the daguerreotype process of photography. It’s episodes like this that show how capable Fischer is at describing how early forms of photography worked. Throughout the book, these technical moments of explanation are complemented by poetic observations about the life Le Prince might have lived and what he thought. The excitement of The Man Who Invented Motion Pictures certainly lies in the mystery at the heart of its story. Much is unknown about the story of Le Prince’s disappearance. Thankfully, Fischer has done an admirable job of sharing what is known. In 1890, Louis went to Dijon, in the northeast region of France, to visit his brother Albert. After three days with Albert and his children, Le Prince was set to take the train to Paris, where he would meet with his friend Richard Wilson, then sail to England so that he could pick up his motion picture device in Liverpool before heading to the U.S., where he lived in New York with Lizzie and his children. But, as Fischer suggests, “Somehow, somewhere between Dijon and Paris, he had vanished.” There were numerous theories as to what happened to Le Prince, and Fischer delves into some of those, such as a conspiracy that Le Prince’s wife imagined. A series of coincidental events led Lizzie to suspect that Edison had a hand in her husband’s disappearance. Shortly after Le Prince disappeared, the announcement of Edison’s Kinetograph, another invention of his, deeply upset her. She is quoted as saying: “It was my husband’s invention of moving pictures!” In his epilogue to the book, Fischer even hints at the possibility of Albert Le Prince’s having something to do with his brother’s disappearance. And yet, Fischer is honest when it comes to whether anything more will be learned about what happened to Le Prince. “It’s hard enough to solve any centuryold mystery. It’s almost impossible when there is so little to go on in the first place.” The Man Who Invented Motion Pictures is a stirring tale about a lesser-known figure in cinematic history. The book also succeeds in offering insight into Le Prince’s ambitions for his own creation. As if having access to Le Prince’s deepest wishes, Fischer writes, “Imagine being able to experience the life of a person from the opposite side of the planet: to see how he exis-ted, and to understand the rhythms of his world… Imagine such a tool being used in education, entertainment, science, and diplomacy. Was that not certain to revolutionize the human experience, as drastically as the railroad and telephone had?” Author Paul Fischer explores the life of Louis Le Prince, an early innovator in the history of the moving image, who mysteriously disappeared. Did Thomas Edison Kill Louis Le Prince, Presumed Inventor of the Motion Picture? By Luis Polanco Much is unknown about the story of Le Prince’s disappearance. Thankfully, Fischer has done an admirable job of sharing what is known.
16 V I D E O A G E October 2022 Canada’s Broadcasting Act was last updated in 1991, over 30 years ago. Andforthepasttwoyears,Canadian Parliament has been moving towards updating the legislation for the modern era. While the issue of regulating online services and content has attracted almost all of the attention in Canada, we in the ethnic broadcasting sector have been working to ensure that other long overdue priorities are recognized. In 2021, the Canadian Ethnocultural Media Coalition (CEMC) was formed. We are a group of organizations advocating for better inclusion of diverse communities and ethnic programming in our laws and industry support programs in Canada. The initial group has expanded and now includes the most active and prolific independent ethnic media organizations in the country. After a false start last year, interrupted by a national election in the fall, the House of Commons completed Third Reading of Bill C-11 (an Act to amend the Broadcasting Act) in June 2022 and the legislation is now before Canada’s Senate. And we are happy to report that the current version of the bill now includes specific new provisions which we believe have the potential to transform and supercharge Canadian multicultural content creation and broadcasting in the years to come. The background is that unfortunately, the Canadian ethnic media industry has never been recognized and allowed full membership in our broadcast system. Multicultural content creation and ethnic Canadian broadcast media, especially TV, have generally been ignored, marginalized and/or under-supported by both the regulatory commission, the CRTC, and by our leading content creation support institutions such as Telefilm Canada and the Canada Media Fund. For almost 20 years, the overreliance on foreign sources of multilingual ethnic TV channels has meant that Canadian interests, whether cultural, political, or economic have been subordinated to foreign cultural, political, and economic interests — and embarrassing fiascos involving foreign channels fromRussia, China, the Middle East, and even Italy have made headlines in Canada and done more to harm those communities here than help them. Some find this hard to believe. After all, Canada was the first nation in the world to adopt an official “multiculturalism policy” in 1971, a half century ago. And Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which has completed its 40th anniversary, contains a Section 27 that calls for all of the rights and freedoms enumerated in the charter to “be interpreted in a manner consistent with the preservation and enhancement of the multicultural heritage of Canadians.” And of course, our nation has never been more ethnoculturally and multilingually diverse as we are today. One in three Canadians (over 11 million) report themselves to be ethnic Canadians. And one in four Canadians (9.4 million) speak at least one language besides English or French. We believe that all four pillars of Canadian society should be recognized, reflected, supported, and participate in our broadcasting system: Canada’s French and English founding cultures, Indigenous communities, and the diverse ethnic minority communities of Canada, including “racialized” communities (the diverse ethnic minority communities of Canada). And Canadians have a tremendous appetite for multilingual made-in-Canada TV programming. Several years ago, we conducted a custom in-person study of 128 Canadians in Toronto representing 25 different immigrant languages, and not only do they crave inlanguage information and entertainment, they also believe in cross-cultural appreciation and understanding through subtitling and closed captioning: • 95 percent of study participants believed it was important to have multilingual TV channels based in Canada. • Nearly 94 percent said closed captioning into English or French is important for programs produced in another language. Furthermore, in additional online surveys of 1,000 English Canadians and 400 French Canadians the importance of multi-lingual TV being available to all Canadians was supported by over 54 percent of those surveyed (60 percent of English Canadians and 38 percent of French Canadians). Given all of the above, we have been determined to see our value acknowledged and our place in the system secured. The results? Well, the current version of the legislation updating the Broadcasting Act includes language in Clause 3 of the Bill, which, if passed, will hopefully ensure that regulatory action focuses on concrete measures to address systemic inequities and provide full and equal participation in the broadcasting system by diverse ethnic minority and racialized communities. It is critical that these sections become law. That language states that the system should “support the production and broadcasting of programs in a diversity of languages that reflect racialized communities and the diversity of the ethnocultural composition of Canadian society, including through broadcasting undertakings that are carried on by Canadians from racialized communities and diverse ethnocultural backgrounds.” Given the pressures being exerted on our sector by a fast-changing media content industry, we desperately hope and remain determined to see our value acknowledged and our place in the system secured. For the benefit of the creators of ethnic content, the broadcasters of that content and of course the viewers, in Canada and worldwide. *Aldo Di Felice (pictured) is president of Torontobased TLN Media Group and a co-founding member of the Canadian Ethnocultural Media Coalition. “Language is at the heart of cultural identity; it shapes who we are and our perspectives. When we speak our languages, we share stories, pass on knowledge and create bonds for generations.” Department of Culture of Canada – Ottawa, June 14, 2021 Ethnic Broadcaster Denounces Canada’s Legislative Indifference Minori ty TV Rights By Aldo Di Felice*
20 V I D E O A G E October 2022 I t took NATPE 180 days (until June 28, 2022) to finally confirm VideoAge’s December 2021 exclusive report that NATPE 2023 was to change venues, and move from Miami, Florida to the Baha Mar resort in Nassau, Bahamas. The move wasn’t without controversy, starting with the secrecy surrounding the move, which left executives speculating as to what the future of the TV trade show—which, since its first edition in 1979, had always been held in the U.S. — was going to look like. This Bahamas venue would be the second big move for NATPE, the first big move was in 2011, when a drastically reduced presence in Las Vegas led to the Miami Beach relocation. This secondmove to Nassau is reportedly happening as an attempt to address issues caused by the high costs of organizing the event at the Miami Beach Fontainebleau. However, this move looks riskier than the first one because, when the market went to Miami, it merely followed its natural evolution into a Latin-basedmarket. With the Bahamas move, NATPE is setting foot onto another foreign land (in addition to NATPE Budapest), possibly drastically changing its LATAM-centric DNA. “NATPE used to represent the National Association of Television Program Executives, and now they are no longer National”, said one former studio executive who now works as an independent producer in Miami. Nonetheless, the new Baha Mar venue in Nassau was soon applauded by some industry players, including the Miami, Florida-based Dianne Bissoon of the Bahamas-based Cable and Wireless, which launched the Lime TV service in 16 Caribbean islands in 2019. “The Grand Hyatt [in the complex called] Baha Mar is a perfect place for conventions”, she said. “I always stay there when I’m in the Bahamas.” However, there are some pressing issues related to the new venue. First are the high costs to participants. Second is the fact that there are only a few direct flights to Nassau and that most connections are through Miami. And third is the competition from both MIPCOM in Cannes and MIP Cancun, both of which are organized by RX France. On May 25, NATPE organized a visit to the Baha Mar complex for executives from nine potential exhibitors fromNewYorkCity,Miami, Los Angeles, and London, who flew there together with NATPE executives. The group was welcomed in Nassau by Graeme Davis, president of the 2,300-room Baha Mar resort that will house the 2023 incarnation of NATPE, which has been renamed NATPE Global for the occasion. Another organized trip took place in late August, 30 people, many hailing from Miami and Los Angeles, were accompanied by NATPE executives to survey the resort. The Baha Mar has three hotels in the large compound: Rosewood, SLS, and the Grand Hyatt, with the most economical being the Hyatt. The total average cost for each “inspector” — as reported to VideoAge by two visitors of the first group — flying from the U.S. was $1,350 for a two-night stay (during the low season). However, a VideoAge call to Baha Mar revealed that before and after NATPE, the cheapest room at the Grand Hyatt was U.S. $419 per night plus a $59 resort fee per day, plus $114 between taxes and service charges, for a total of $592 per night. Indeed, some in the visiting contingent were concerned with the high costs of food, beverages, and services offered by the complex, which were all on the pricey side. The hefty price tag, which may not come as a big concern for many distributors, could be detrimental for program buyers — particularly those from central LATAM — if they will not be offered complimentary hotel rooms. But, the response was largely positive from the second group of visitors. Their major concern was the fact that beds in what will become exhibition rooms during the event will not be removed, representing a problem for those who cannot rent a suite with a living room. Many attendees will also likely be uncomfortable taking a business meeting in a roomwith a bed. Another question raised was whether the market will take place in one hotel or in suites and stands scattered all around the complex. Onemore concernwas the availability of a place for breakfast meetings. Baha Mar supposedly has 45 restaurants, but the “inspectors” only visited a single buffet table with a long line during their visit. An additional issue is whether or not Miamibased distributors will benefit from this new arrangement. Since all LATAM buyers (including those from Mexico) will have to fly through Miami in order to hop on over to Nassau, will local Miami distributors try to get ahead of the game and ask buyers to pay them a visit before heading to NATPE, in effect replicating the L.A. Screenings model? One content distributor fromMexico provided the answer: “I do think many distributors will arrange to have meetings before or after their clients fly to Nassau. Also, many Miami-based clients will ask to meet with distributors before or after in Miami.” Two other questions raised regarded the number of years NATPE has signed (or will sign) with Baha Mar, and whether the distributors who paid for the cancelled Miami 2022 market (pandemic-related cancellation) and haven’t yet been reimbursed, will attend NATPE Global because they foresee a goodmarket, or whether it’s just to use up their credit. After the June 28, 2022 press release officially announced that NATPE 2023 would move to Nassau, and be held January 17-19, 2023 (the same dates of the former NATPE Miami), Video- Age was able to get some of the answers. VideoAge met with NATPE CEO JP Bommel during NATPE Budapest, and on that occasion Bommel said that exhibitors will be able to rent suites in all three of the hotels in the Baha Mar complex (at the exhibitors’ discretion, just like at NATPE Miami). As for the floor exhibition and conferences, they will take place in the complex’s Convention Center. Plus, when asked how many years NATPE has signed with the Baha Mar, after some hesitation, Bommel re-ported that the organization, for now, has a deal for “one year, in 2023.” About the hotel room rates, and whether NATPE will comp some of the buyers, Bommel would only note that NATPE has “a very compelling initiative for buyers.” He also specified that prices will be “less expensive [than NATPE Miami]”, and that they’re “looking [both] at cost efficiency and adding value to our clients”, as also stated in NATPE’s June 28 press release. Finally, regarding to the close proximity of three markets favored by LATAM participants, MIPCOM, MIP Cancun, and NATPE, the expectation is that LATAM participants (both buyers and sellers) will choose two out of three. On October 3, NATPE announced that it will file petition for restructuring its business affairs with the bankrupcy court under chapter 11, but still intends to move forward with the Baha Mar event. NATPE Miami Becomes NATPE Global In Nassau, and Faces Universal Challenges Quo Vadis? NATPE’s Charlie Weiss and JP Bommel
22 V I D E O A G E October 2022 On August 22, oral arguments ended in the U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust trial (U.S. v. Bertelsmann SE, 21-cv-02886, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia) to block the book publisher from merging with rival ViacomCBS’ Simon & Schuster. The result of the trial, which is expected to be decided later this fall, will have a massive impact on how the government handles corporate consolidation going forward. Some antitrust experts have been thinking of this trial as a kind of test balloon. If the government loses, we could be entering an era of monopsonies — an unfair buying market that would drive down themoney paid to authors. If, on the other hand, the government wins, other industries could face much more aggressive government scrutiny than before. Power could be redistributed away from giant corporations and back toward the independent workers they employ. If the publishers win, meanwhile, the government will have to rethink its strategy. When the proposed merger between Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster was first announced in2020, theprevailingnarrativewas that the combined entity would give helpless publishers the leverage they needed to push back against the almighty force of Amazon. However, subsequent discovery of internal emails indicated that that was a publicity cover. In those emails, Penguin Random House’s CEO Markus Dohle admits that he “never, never bought into that argument”, and that one of the “goals” of the post-merger would be to become an “exceptional partner” to Amazon. The government stuck to the narrative that the publishers were savvy operators who knew exactly what they were doing with their billiondollar companies to help decide the future of American antitrust law. U.S. District Judge Florence Pan, a President Barack Obama appointee, oversaw the threeweek nonjury trial in Washington. She hasn’t said when she will rule on whether the publishing merger, valued at more than $2 billion, should proceed. Simplyput, ifPenguinRandomHouseacquires Simon & Schuster, the two publishers will stop competing against each other, a practice that is not uncommon within the vertically-owned television and film production industries. Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster are two members of what’s called the “Big Five” of publishing, with the other three slots filled by HarperCollins, Hachette, and Macmillan. The Big Five control roughly 80 percent of the trade market for books in the U.S., and Penguin Random House, with a market share of 25 percent in 2020, is the biggest one of all. U.S. courts have long recognized that the antitrust laws are designed to protect both buyers and sellers of products and services. According to theU.S. Department of Justice, this merger will cause harm to American workers… through consolidation among buyers — a fact pattern referred to as “monopsony.” Such cases are historically rare. If the DOJ succeeds here, it will be setting a major precedent for the way the U.S. prosecutes corporate giants. Many market-watchers are looking at this trial as a test of President Joe Biden’s administration’s resolve against corporate consolidation, since previous major mergers have sailed past regulators with relatively little resistance. “There has been a lot of criticism over the years about the government being too willing to take settlements in merger cases and not stopping mergers fully”, said Harry First, a law professor at New York University. “It’s one thing to give speeches about policies, it’s another thing to go into court and actually litigate and win cases”, he added. “In stopping Penguin Random House from extending its control of the U.S. publishing market, this lawsuit will prevent further consolidation in an industry that has a history of collusion”, said Acting Assistant Attorney General Richard A. Powers of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. German media company Bertelsmann SE, which owns Penguin Random House, agreed in November 2020 to buy Simon & Schuster from ViacomCBS, now called Paramount Global. The Department of Justice has claimed that Penguin Random House’s $2.2 billion merger with Simon & Schuster will create a duopoly and damage competition in the U.S. Presentinghis closingargument, Department of Justice attorney John Read said: “We brought this case because the best protection for authors is robust competition. This is not about the passion of publishers for books and authors, this is about the largest publisher, Penguin Random House, cementing its position at the top of the market.” That highmarket sharemakes the deal illegal under U.S. antitrust law unless the defense shows evidence to demonstrate new firms are likely to enter the market or the deal’s cost-savings outweigh the potential harm, according to Read. “In the past 30 years, no publisher has entered the market and become as strong as the Big Five, including Amazon. com Inc., which now publishes books itself in addition to selling them”, he said. The government’s expert witness, economist Nathan Hill, estimated that the merged company would control 49 percent of the market for “anticipated top-selling books” and that the Big Five will have more than 95 percent of the market. Lawyers for Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster defended the merger, arguing it would actually increase competition and claiming the U.S. government had not proved it would create significant harm. Judge Pan will make a final verdict later this year on whether the merger should be blocked. In 2006, with the separation of Viacom and CBS into separate publicly traded companies, Simon & Schuster became a part of the CBS Corporation. Penguin Random House, the lar-gest book publisher in the United States, is owned by the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. For Simon & Schuster’s owner, ViacomCBS, the all-cash deal will help the company pay down its $21 billion debt load and keep up dividend payments to shareholders. The sale of Simon & Schuster is part of a great unwinding taking place across the media industry. ViacomCBS, which also owns Paramount Studios and Nickelodeon, has bet its future on streaming, and books won’t play a big role in that strategy. ViacomCBS received more than half a dozen inquiries from interested buyers, including financial firms and the French media giant Vivendi, which holds a minority stake in Hachette through the publisher Lagardère. The top three contenders were Bertelsmann, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp (which owns HarperCollins), and Vivendi. The sale could also have a ripple effect throughout the literary ecosystem just as consolidation has done with both the television and motion picture industry. The biggest houses are better equipped to negotiate favorable terms with major retailers like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and the big box stores, and are also able to develop direct-toconsumer marketing and sales networks so that they are not as dependent on retailers, again, echoing what has taken place in both broadcasting and theatrical releases in terms of OTT and streaming. * Steven M. Schiffman is a lawyer currently based in New York City and Las Vegas. Mega Mergers Being Challenged With An Eye TowardMonopoly Legal Eagle By Steven M. Schiffman*
24 V I D E O A G E October 2022 Autumn is here, whichmeans that TV schedules around the world are returning with primetime fare that hearkens back to a simpler time from the past. Starting with the format genre, in the U.K., reality franchise Big Brother (produced and distributed by Endemol Shine Banijay) will be coming back, airing on ITV2 in 2023. The show aired from 2000-2010 on Channel 4, and then on Channel 5 until 2018. In the U.S., quiz show The Weakest Link returns (for a third season) on NBC, just like game show Password (from Fremantle), which was originally broadcast by CBS in 1961 (delivering a good 4.21 million viewers and winning its slot). Another returning classic in the reality genre is Belgian format The Mole (produced and distributed by Primitives), which has been on the air since 1998 with more than 20 international versions. And it’s now back in Italy (Canale 5) and on Netflix. Through All3Media and currently on BBc1, mystery competition The Traitors is receiving many local adaptations around the world, the most recent one in France, where it’s called Les Traîtres – Seront-ils démasqués? The format aired on M6 with the same premise as the original: inside the group of contestants there is traitor, playing to exclude others from the final prize. This format is also being adapted in Australia (Network Ten) and the U.S. (Peacock). International demand for reality and game shows is still high internationally, at par with talent shows. This year, adventure reality series Survivor (from Banijay) is celebrating its 25th anniversary, representing a global milestone in its genre. In the singing competition category, France TF1 produced the third season of Global Agency’s format Good Singers. Dating shows are now enjoying great success, since they benefited from the lockdowns of the last few years. In this genre, Japanese franchise Future Diary, which sees two strangers act out a love story guided by a book, is now on Netflix, after 20 years of popularity from the publication of the original manga. Period dating shows have also become popular, especially the ones set during the Regency era (1811-1820), spearheaded by the success of Shonda Rhimes’ hit series Bridgerton. The period is now relived in reality shows such as Love is King (on ITV in the U.K.), and Back to Love (produced by Casta Diva, on Discovery). Some dating shows have evolved and hybridized, like Love in the Jungle (merging the adventure/reality and dating genre, on Discovery), and Cooking for Love, hosted by chef Gino D’Acampo (cooking show plus dating). Popular romcom series from days of yore are also the inspiration for new dating shows. For example, Paramount has transformed The Love Boat into a reality show with the title The Real Love Boat (for the CBS network). Moving on to the drama genre, the appeal of history has produced series that are based on actual historical events. German (ZDF) and Spanish (RTVE) co-production Boundless is based on the adventures of Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan during his circumnavigation of Earth (on Amazon Prime), and French TV Distribution’s series Diane de Poitiers tells the story of the famous courtier and King Henry II’s mistress (on France 2). Stretching the boundaries of history into fantasy, HBO’s House of the Dragon (a prequel of Game of Thrones), and Amazon’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power (prequel of The Lord of the Rings) are two of the most successful recent launches in the genre. Legal and medical shows never seem to lose their appeal: The BBC is continuing to enjoy international success with returning legal drama The Split, and evergreen soapy medical drama Doctors, which has been adapted in 11 countries. Family dramas and long-running series are the bread and butter of Turkish producers and distributors and are still conquering viewers around the world. Turkey is now also relying on Japanese scripted formats to adapt and relaunch (as ready-made) on the international markets, as in the case of family drama Anne, based on the Nippon TV format Mother; and series Kadin, the adaptation of Nippon TV’s Woman. New ATV series The Father premiered last month in Turkey to earn the highest September debut ratings in 10 years. For its part, Kanal D debuted last month its new ambitious series That Girl. Soap opera Forbidden Fruit (distributed by Calinos) is returning for a sixth season on FOX. (By Maria Chiara Duranti *) *Maria Chiara Duranti spent 20 years at Mediaset Italy and Mediaset Spain at their Formats Division before launching Formatbiz (www.formatbiz.it), which specializes in researching the international TV markets for scripted and unscripted formats. Programming Trends Around the World. What TV Audiences Are Watching TV Formats & More French TV’s series Diane de Poitiers tells the story of the famous courtier and King Henry II’s mistress. Mystery competition The Traitors (on BBc1) is being adapted in France, Australia, and the U.S.
26 V I D E O A G E October 2022 The return of in-person international markets and festivals has all of the industry’s players very excited. MIPCOM, in particular, will be a thermometer measuring whether all this excitement is justified, and that business can and will return to the high level of pre-pandemic times. It will also surely show whether the Cannes market can meet the needs of an industry that has changed dramatically since 2019. Western Europe is traditionally the engine that drives the Côte d’Azur expo-conference, contributing the largest number of buyers and the largest number of exhibitors/sellers. North America comes in a strong second, and Asia comes in third, followed by the delegation of companies and executives from Eastern Europe. But what about Latin America? As far as the content that Latin American buyers are looking for, Parrot Analytics, the Los Angeles-based global research company, has just released a 42-page digital booklet with the results of a survey covering “Content Trends Across Latin America and Spain.” The survey was made available to recipients of MIP Cancun newsletters and e-mails, and covers most LATAM countries, in particular Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico. The report also offers a look into the success of Turkish series in LATAM, explaining how “Mexico stands out as a key source of drama for the global market”, and analyzes the popularity of various genres in different LATAM countries. According to the report, “there has been a major surge in demand for Turkish content in LATAM since the middle of 2020”, to the point that “some Turkish series are more successful in LATAM than in Turkey.” The report also points out that the audience for Turkish series is more female-skewed. LATAM has also been welcoming South Korean and Japanese TV series of late, and the report stated that, since last year, the demand for Japanese series increased from 10.5 percent to 11.8 percent. However, the share for Korean TV fare decreased from 3.4 percent to 3.2 percent. Looking at various LATAM countries, it must be noted that inArgentina, children’s shows are the viewers’ favorite genre, taking 45.3 percent more of the survey votes compared to the global average, followed by action-adventure (16.4 percent), and variety (14.3 percent). Similarly, children’s shows dominate in Chile with 92.1 percent, followed by animation (46.3 percent), and variety (32.8 percent). In Colombia, the preference for children’s shows reaches a whopping 98.5 percent compared to the global average, while variety settles for 47 percent. In Mexico, children’s programs score high marks with 72.1 percent, and variety shows are at 31.4 percent. The major LATAM country where children’s fare doesn’t fare so well is Brazil, where it has just 19.1 percent of the survey vote compared to the global average, while variety dominates with 82.6 percent, followed by horror (27.4 percent). But how much LATAM attendance should we expect at the upcoming MIPCOM CANNES? It looks like the number of Latin American executives in Cannes will be lower than that of participants from many other territories, both in terms of exhibitors and of attendees, with Argentinians and Brazilians representing the largest contingents. This is mostly because travel expenditures in the post-pandemic period are much higher than before. The current cost of plane tickets and accomodations are frequently cited by Latin American executives as a reason for skipping out on in-person industry events. Another thing that must also be taken into consideration is the fact that MIPCOM happens shortly after the four-day Spainbased Iberseries & Platino Industria, which takes place three weeks before the Cannes event. The second annual Iberseries & Platino Industria is a television event that takes place in Madrid, September 27 to 30, and was created to encourage the audiovisual business in Spain and Portugal. This Iberseries & Platino Industria is an initiative of Spain’s rights management group EGEDA, and the Fundación Secuoya. This latter organization is a creation of Secuoya, a group formed by 1,600 Spanish media professionals. The Matadero Madrid, a former slaughterhouse, is the venue of the Iberseries & Platino Industria event, and has become a favorite place for LATAM executives to have meetings. The event also offers 36 screenings for international buyers from, among other locales, Germany, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Spain, the U.S., France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. MIPCOM also takes place shortly before sister event MIP Cancun, which is set for November 13-16, 2022 and has gained relevance for the Latin American TV sector. A survey conducted by The Daily Television among sellers and buyers from Latin America found that MIP Cancun, which starts 24 days after MIPCOM, has become the number one market for television companies and executives from the Latin American and Hispanic market in the United States who do not regularly attend European events. (By Omar Mendez*) A Review of LATAM TV Consumption and Trade Market Participation LATAM TV News * Omar Mendez is the editor-in-chief of Spanishlanguage publication The Daily Television Jornadas: Connecting LATAM’s Southern Cone Via Television After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID pandemic, the Associación Argentina Video & Conectividad, or Argentinean Cable Association (ATVC), is once again organizing its in-person Jornadas (meaning “days”) exhibition for cable/satellite channels’ content and equipment in Buenos Aires. The show mainly focuses on the Southern Cone of Latin America (Cono Sur), but its conferences also cover additional LATAM countries besides Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay. This time, instead of its traditional September dates, the Jornadas has been moved to November 9-10, 2022, which is the beginning of the summer in Argentina. The venue will once again be the Hilton Hotel in the Puerto Madero district of the city. Among the confirmed exhibiting companies (thus far) are AMC Network, ARTEAR, NBCUniversal, Paramount, and Warner Bros. Discovery. With its many ups and downs, reflecting the various economical stages of the region, the Jornadas has managed to stay relevant for some 32 years, mostly due to the sheer determination of ATVC president Walter Burzaco, a onetime Argentinean cable TV executive who has been at the helm for 22 of the association’s 59 years. DS
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