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Tag: BBC Studios

  • VOOT Kids partners with BBC Studios CBeebies

    VOOT Kids partners with BBC Studios CBeebies

    MUMBAI: Viacom18 Media Pvt. Ltd’s digital arm Viacom18 Digital Ventures has gone live with India’s most inclusive kids’ entertainment and fun learning OTT application, VOOT Kids, featuring popular content from BBC Studios’ CBeebies.  

    Catering to the digitally native kids’ ecosystem, VOOT Kids is all set to redefine entertainment and learning through a diverse and multi-genre content offering across Watch, Read, Listen and Learn segments. Further expanding the entertainment experience in the kids’ category, VOOT Kids, the all-new fun edutainment platform, has engaged with iconic brands including BBC Studios’ CBeebies, to fortify its rich content library by licensing some of their most popular shows that bring to life the engaging world of fun and learning. 

    The premium pre-school content on VOOT Kids, including award-winning series fromCBeebies, will provide young viewers with an immersive experience of learning while they have fun. Offering the most pedagogically advanced learning and edutainment content, CBeebies is a globally
    well-known and trustworthy brand with a wide range of shows, produced by developmental experts to promote imaginative play, social interaction, language skills and educational values.

    With its vast and multi-varied genre of content, VOOT Kids’ content slate (WATCH section) will now include much-loved titles from CBeebies, including the BAFTA and Emmy award-winning series, Hey Duggee, alongside other titles like Go Jetters, Dinopaws, Mr Bloom’s Nursery, Old Jack& Boat Rockpool Tales and CBeebies’ fabulous collection of bedtime stories.

    Speaking about VOOT Kids and the content from BBC Studios, VOOT Kids business head Saugato Bhowmik said, “With VOOT Kids our endeavor is to create a superior curated platform that brings together a prudent mix of fun and learning. Our diverse and expansive content library and games are a great way for parents to infuse meaningful and fun learning opportunities into the daily lives of kids, largely interested only in entertainment.”

    He further added “Kids love positive stories and adorable toons and the addition of CBeebies shows is sure to add significant diversity and value to our vast content slate.”

    Commenting on the recently signed content licensing agreement with Viacom18 Media, BBC Studios  South and South East Asia Sales Director Stanley Fernandes said, “We are pleased to be partnering with VOOT Kids to bring some of CBeebies’ favourite programmes back to Indian
    audiences. CBeebies is known worldwide for its impressive content line up, with programmes specially designed by developmental experts to promote imaginative play, social interaction, language skills, and educational values. Along with VOOT Kids, we are aiming to make screen time
    meaningful for kids, so that it is entertaining, engaging and enriching.”

    With over 5000+ hours of content consisting of children’s all-time favorite Indian and International shows like Dora the Explorer, Oswald, Motu Patlu, Peppa Pig, Chhota Bheem, Ben10, Barbie Dreamtopia ,  diverse  book titles , immersive  audio books and fun learning games, VOOT Kids is  all set to offer a dynamic and inclusive experience of fun, learning and entertainment.
     

  • BBC Studios signs licensing deal for Mastermind with Bangladesh’s Duronto TV

    BBC Studios signs licensing deal for Mastermind with Bangladesh’s Duronto TV

    MUMBAI: BBC Studios today announced a licensing deal with Duronto TV, a premier television channel for children in Bangladesh, for its iconic British TV game show, Mastermind. The local version of the international quiz show will be titled Mastermind Family Bangladesh and will be produced by Duronto TV. The show will premiere on 13 October 2019 and will play from Sunday to Thursday at 8.00 pm on Duronto TV.

    Mastermind Family Bangladesh will have 64 families from across the country competing for the title. The show will be directed by Sundija Siddique and hosted by former BBC journalist Nobonita Chowdhury.

    Mastermind was broadcast for the first time in 1972 in the UK. The long-running quiz show has as its distinct prop an imposing black chair in which contestants sit and attempt to answer a series of challenging questions. The show is immensely popular not only in the UK but across the world; it is broadcast in various forms in Australia, New Zealand, India, Ireland, Russia, Turkey, and many others.

    Ron Crasto, Vice-President and Business Development, BBC Studios India, said: “We are excited to partner with Duronto TV to create the local version of Mastermind. We hope that the Bangladesh audience will support and love the series in the manner it has been in the UK, India and many countries.”

    Abhijit Chowdhury, Director, Duronto TV said: “We are elated to bring the first-ever knowledge-based quiz show to our audiences. It is a pleasure to work with BBC Studios on this very exciting project.” 

  • Hungama Play expands its library with blockbuster TV shows from BBC Studios

    Hungama Play expands its library with blockbuster TV shows from BBC Studios

    MUMBAI: Hungama Play, a premium video on demand platform owned by Hungama Digital Media, has premiered a slate of critically acclaimed TV shows from BBC Studios. Available as a result of a long-standing partnership with BBC Studios, these shows include BAFTA winner – Happy Valley, cult comedy – Yes, Prime Minister, Golden Globe winner – Top of the Lake, Emmy nominated – Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond and Almost Royal.

    Hungama will leverage its distribution strengths to give the shows a wide release. Besides Hungama Play, the shows will be available to stream through Hungama Play on Vodafone Play, Idea Movies & TV, Airtel TV, Amazon Fire TV Stick, Tata Sky Binge, SHAREit and Android TVs. Additionally, Hungama’s strategic association with Xiaomi will also enable users to watch the shows via Hungama Play on Mi TV.

    Speaking about the new BBC content, Siddhartha Roy, COO, Hungama Digital Media, said, “Hungama Play offers a diverse, multi-lingual and multi-genre library of content. Our partnership with BBC has helped us strengthen our library further by adding award-winning and critically acclaimed TV shows to our content offerings. We are certain that the new shows will offer our audiences a chance to explore content that is enriching, distinct and unique.”

    Stanley Fernandes, Sales Director, South Asia at BBC Studios said, “BBC’s content is well-appreciated by viewers and critics alike, around the world. Our shows are known to be path-breaking and driven by strong stories and characters. We are glad to premiere five of our most-watched shows on Hungama Play. We are certain that Hungama Play’s strong distribution network will make the content available to the viewers readily and easily.”

    New shows, now available on Hungama Play include:

    Happy Valley

    Happy Valley is a British crime drama that follows Catherine, a no-nonsense police sergeant who heads up a team of officers in a rural Yorkshire valley. Things go downhill when a staged kidnapping spirals out of control turning into a brutal series of crimes. The story follows Catherine involved in something significantly bigger than her rank, but unknowingly close to home. The BAFTA-winning series has been touted as a powerhouse of heartbreak, thrills and laughs along with a chilling narrative.

    Creator: Sally Wainwright

    Stars: Sarah Lancashire (BAFTA, National Television Award recipient), Siobhan Finneran (Downton Abbey), Charlie Murphy (Peaky Blinders), James Norton (Black Mirror)

    Top of the Lake

    Top of the Lake is a powerful and haunting story from Oscar-winning writer/director Jane Campion and stars Emmy Award winning actress Elisabeth Moss in the lead role (who won a Golden Globe for her performance in this show). Obsessed with the disappearance of a 12-year-old pregnant girl near a freezing lake in New Zealand, a brave detective finds herself up against small-town secrets and a side of herself that was meticulously kept at bay.

    Creators: Jane Campion, Gerard Lee

    Stars: Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid’s Tale, Mad Men), David Wenham (300: Rise of an Empire, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, Lord of the Rings), Peter Mullan (Ozark, Braveheart), Holly Hunter (Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, The Big Sick)

    Yes, Prime Minister

    A revival of classic 1980s comedy ‘Yes, Minister’, ‘Yes, Prime Minister’ deals with much complex situations of current times. The ultimately powerful but beleaguered Prime Minister is once again 'assisted' by his impenetrably loquacious Cabinet Secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby, and torn but sensible Principal Private Secretary, Bernard Woolley. As in their previous roles, their jobs often devolve into a battle of agendas, ideals, wills, and wits.

    Creators: Antony Jay, Jonathan Lynn

    Stars: David Haig (Killing Eve, Downton Abbey), Henry Goodman (Notting Hill), Chris Larkin

    Almost Royal

    BBC America’s first original comedy series Almost Royal follows the lives of two ignorant British aristocrats visiting America for the first time.  The faux-reality series shows its protagonist interacting with real-life, unsuspecting everyday Americans.

    Directors: Chris Faith, Marcus Liversedge

    Stars: Ed Gamble, Amy Hoggart

    Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond

    Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond that chronicles the adventurous military career of James Bond creator Ian Fleming. The fictionalized biography dwells on various aspects of Fleming’s Royal Navy espionage and romantic adventures. The action drama features Dominic Cooper in the titular role and is directed by Mat Whitecross.

    Director: Mat Whitecross

    Stars: Dominic Cooper (Captain America: The First Avenger, My Week with Marilyn), Lara Pulver, Samuel West

    The shows join Hungama Play’s extensive library of over 5000 films in English, Hindi and regional languages, over 1500 short films, 7500+ hours of kids and TV content in various languages and more than 150,000 short-format videos across genres like music, films, humour etc. 

  • Netflix ropes in BBC Studios’ Jackie Lee-Joe as CMO

    Netflix ropes in BBC Studios’ Jackie Lee-Joe as CMO

    MUMBAI: Amid intense competition in the streaming market worldwide, the streaming giant has made another important move by appointing Jackie Lee-Joe as chief marketing officer. Lee-Joe who has been CMO of BBC Studios since 2015 will take up the new role in September.

    “Jackie is a truly original thinker with a wealth of global experience — making her the perfect fit as our next chief marketing officer. I’m excited to work with her in promoting our brand and original programming in new and creative ways to our members all around the world,”  Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said.

    Lee-Joe replaces Netflix’s CMO of seven years Kelly Bennett who left the company in March. Earlier this year, Spencer Neumann was appointed as chief financial officer in the organisation.

    “Netflix is a much loved and respected brand, entertaining audiences everywhere with it’s rich and thought provoking original programming. I’m thrilled to be joining one of the world’s most creative, dynamic and fearlessly innovative companies,” Lee-Joe commented.

  • BBC Studios India appoints Sameer Gogate as Business Head, Productions

    BBC Studios India appoints Sameer Gogate as Business Head, Productions

    Mumbai: BBC Studios announces the appointment of Sameer Gogate as Business Head for India’s production business.  Gogate, joins BBC Studios from the 1st of July, 2019. In his new role, he will lead India’s production business and report to Myleeta Aga, based in Singapore.

    Gogate comes with a rich background in content, having worked across the TV and Film Industry with Eros International, Endemol and Viacom in various functions – including Business Planning, Commercial and Production Management for TV and Films. At Vuclip, he has been Head of Revenue and Business Development since 2017. He will be overseeing existing series in production, development of new concepts, format adaptations and branded content in his new role.

  • BBC Studios, HOOQ India sign content deal for three British dramas

    BBC Studios, HOOQ India sign content deal for three British dramas

    MUMBAI: Indian viewers will get access to nearly 200 hours of top BBC dramas—Luther, Maigret and Wolf Hall—as a result of a content deal between BBC Studios and HOOQ India. The announcement was made on the second day of the Asia Pay TV Operators Summit (APOS) in Indonesia.

    “We have seen increasing interest in premium British dramas in India and are very pleased to be working with HOOQ to deliver quality British drama to meet this demand. We are confident that the programmes will be well received by HOOQ’s subscribers,” said BBC Studios SVP and GM of India and Southeast Asia Myleeta Aga.

    Programmes include BBC’s award-winning crime drama Luther, a gripping psychological thriller driven by an intellectually brilliant but emotionally impulsive cop John Luther (Idris Elba); Maigret, a drama rendition of Georges Simenon’s bestselling crime stories set in 1950s Paris, played by actor Rowan Atkinson; and Wolf Hall, an intimate portrait of Thomas Cromwell (Mark Rylance), the brilliant consigliere to King Henry VIII (Damian Lewis), as he manoeuvres the corridors of power at the Tudor court. 

    “We are always looking out for new content to entertain our subscribers and we are very excited to share with our Indian subscribers these award-winning and highly rated dramas from BBC Studios. Our subscribers have come to know and love the content that we constantly bring to them and we will continue to add more hours of exciting and amazing entertainment to keep India HOOQ’d!” HOOQ chief content officer Jennifer Batty said.

    Also Read :

    Zulfiqar Khan joins Hooq India as MD

    Hooq to maintain its Hollywood focus in India

  • BBC Studios signs licensing deal with ANC to produce Dancing with the Stars in Nepal

    BBC Studios signs licensing deal with ANC to produce Dancing with the Stars in Nepal

    MUMBAI: BBC Studios today announced a deal that will see a Nepali version of the iconic BBC format Dancing with the Stars on television there. This deal with local production house ANC Pvt Ltd will see the Nepali version, Dancing with the Stars Nepal, premiere by the end of 2018. ANC will both produce and distribute the 26-episode series in Nepal.

    Multi-award-winning primetime entertainment format Dancing with the Stars from the BBC sees local celebrities partner professional dancers to compete in a dance competition full of glitz and glamour. Every week, contestants have to learn a new dance and showcase their footwork on the dance floor, in a bid to impress a distinguished panel of judges and avoid elimination. To date, over 3500 episodes and 300 series have been recorded around the world. With this format deal in Nepal, Dancing with the Stars will have been sold to 57 countries worldwide.

    The licensing deal was sealed by the newly appointed Vice President, BBC Studios, Ron Crasto. Ron heads the New Business Development, OTT and Digital division of BBC Studios, South Asia. He will be responsible for seeking opportunities for BBC brands, content and ancillary businesses in the region.

    “We are happy to welcome Ron to head our new business development in South Asia. Ron brings with him immense experience from his previous stints across multiple media companies,” Myleeta Aga, SVP and GM of South and South East Asia, BBC Studios, commented. “We have produced Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, the Hindi version of Dancing with the Stars for eight seasons now and are excited to see how it will be received in Nepal. We hope that the Nepali audience will support the new series, and expect that the series will dazzle viewers in Nepal as it has in India.”

    ANC Productions, Director, Mr. Vivek Singh said, “The people of Nepal have immense love for dance and we are ready to enthral them with stellar performances. It is a pleasure to work with BBC Studios, and to be a part of the growing Dancing with the Stars community.” 

    Elsewhere in Asia, the format has previously been sold in China, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam.

  • BBC Studios launches officially on 3 April

    BBC Studios launches officially on 3 April

    MUMBAI:  The newly created BBC Studios officially has launched today (3 April 2018), heralding a new chapter for the BBC’s content creation and exploitation activities.

    In an environment of increasing competition for viewers, the merger of BBC Worldwide and BBC Studios brings the BBC Group into line with the rest of the industry and ensures the creative and commercial success of the organisation. BBC Studios will see content through the full life cycle of development, commissioning, production and co-production, sales and distribution and will underpin the creation of new BBC-owned IP.

    BBC Studios CEO Tim Davie said, “Bringing together the UK’s most awarded production business, a world-class content sales business, our unique portfolio of brands, and a network of premium indie partners, BBC Studios has what it takes to create and export quality British programmes in this new age of content.”

    The newly formed BBC Studios will build on the unique heritage and global success of both organisations, with British creativity and outstanding content forming the cornerstone of the company.

    Leading a staff of around 3000 and overseeing an annual turnover of £1.4bn, Tim Davie, Chief Executive Officer and Mark Linsey, Chief Creative Officer officially assumed their new roles today and unveiled the organisation’s new vision, purpose and strategy.

    BBC Studios CCO Mark Linsey said, “Today is an important and exciting day for the BBC. For me, it’s all about BBC Studios’ outstanding creativity and the brilliant programmes that we and our indie partners make, so it’s even more thrilling that I can announce today that Shakespeare & Hathaway, our break-out daytime drama hit, has been recommissioned.” 

    And following last month’s announcement to set up a production office in Sydney, Australia, BBC Studios is developing new production opportunities in Beijing, China.  Award-winning executive producer Matthew Springford, who has over 20 years’ experience in factual programme-making, will be based at the BBC office in Beijing alongside the BBC Studios’ distribution team and will be working with Chinese TV stations and digital platforms to co-develop and co-produce original content and new formats across all factual genres.

    Also read: 

    Sony BBC Earth shakes up factual entertainment space

    Surya Food Agro begins testing of news, GEC channels

  • BBC Studios names Anna Mallett as chief operating officer

    BBC Studios names Anna Mallett as chief operating officer

    MUMBAI: BBC’s production arm BBC Studios has appointed Anna Mallett as its new chief operating officer (COO).

    In her previous role, Mallett was BBC Production Proposals director and project lead.

    As COO, she will oversee all operational elements of the new pan UK division, bringing together business and technology activities and working closely with operations, finance, production management and commercial colleagues across the BBC. She will play a key role in the creation of the new BBC Studios Division, leading a culture focused on delivering bold, British creative content for audiences.

    Mallett says, “I am really looking forward to working with Peter and the fantastic BBC Production team as we build the new BBC Studios.”

    She was previously CEO of BBC Studios and Post Production Ltd, the commercial subsidiary of the BBC providing studios, post production and digital media services to the media industry, where she oversaw considerable business change, including relocating the company’s business operations to Elstree. She has been part of the BBC’s senior leadership team since 2006, and from 2008 was controller of business strategy, responsible for the BBC’s overall commercial, distribution and platform strategy. Before joining the BBC, she worked for seven years at the Boston Consultant Group in London.

    BBC Studios director Peter Salmon adds, “It is great to welcome Anna on board. She is a brilliant collaborator, a clear thinker and great manager with previous successful experience of running commercial companies. Her acute business sense, and understanding of the industry will play a key part in creating a BBC Studios that is vibrant and creative.”

    Mallett will join Mark Freeland, Natalie Humphreys, Katie Taylor and Wendy Darke on a new BBC Studios Board and she starts immediately.

  • BBC & Pact outline policy framework for BBC Studios

    BBC & Pact outline policy framework for BBC Studios

    MUMBAI: The BBC has entered into an agreement with the British trade association Pact regarding the BBC Studios proposal.

     

    The proposed policy framework will “strengthen the UK production sector and bring substantial benefits in terms of opening up new commissioning opportunities to competition.”

     

    BBC director of strategy and digital James Purnell says, “We welcome the agreement reached with Pact. Creative competition is in the best interest of audiences and BBC Studios is an essential part of the BBC’s future.”

     

    Pact CEO John McVay adds, “Pact is pleased that we have been able to negotiate a progressive agreement with the BBC that will result in even more competition at the BBC for the best programmes regardless of who makes them. This will build on the success of the WOCC and ensure BBC licence fee payers continue to enjoy the best of British.”

     

    The new charter and agreement will set out a policy framework for the relationship between BBC Public Service, BBC Studios and BBC Worldwide.  The proposal is that the agreement should include a set of guiding principles for how BBC Studios, as a commercial entity, should operate, and its relationship with the BBC Public Service. Additionally, there should be no cross-subsidy from BBC Public Service to BBC Studios; a separation between the finances and operations of BBC Public Service and BBC Studios; and fair transfer pricing.

     

    The proposal also states that there should be an “arms’ length commissioning, with commissions offered to BBC Studios subject to the same range of published tariffs and terms as are available to external producers.”

     

    BBC Studios will receive new commissions, creatively tendered established/returning series and the opportunities afforded by de-commissions, following fair and transparent competition with third party producers.

     

    The BBC Board would set out methodologies and processes for meeting the above principles prior to BBC Studios being launched as a commercial entity. Additionally, BBC Studios will be set up and operated to ensure compliance with State Aid requirements.

     

    As was previously set out, the BBC Studios proposal will exclude Network TV commissioned content for children’s, current affairs and sport. For current affairs, the BBC proposes to reduce the current in-house guarantee on eligible hours from 50 per cent to 40 per cent and extend the independent guarantee from 25 per cent to 40 per cent, creating a 25 per cent swing when these two changes are added together. For children’s, the BBC proposes to reduce the in-house guarantee on eligible hours from 50 per cent to 40 per cent and extend the independent guarantee from 25 per cent to 40 per cent. The BBC proposes that these changes are phased-in over a two year period from the new charter. For sport, the current in-house and independent guarantees would remain unchanged. Content made by BBC Studios, as a commercial entity, would not count as “in-house” and therefore would not count as part of in-house quota.