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<title>TBI - Television Business International -  Rss Feed </title>
<description>A list of articles from the TBI vision website</description>
<link>http://www.tbivision.com/</link>
<lastBuildDate>Tue, 09 Mar 2010 22:33:01 -0800</lastBuildDate> 
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<title>Bravo aquires Starz's Spartacus - 09/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1413</link>
<pubDate>09/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[UK pay TV broadcaster Bravo has acquired Starz Media's gladiator drama Spartacus: Blood and Sand.
andnbsp;
The Virgin Media-owned network has picked up the first two seasons of the 13x1hour series and will air it this summer. The show, which is produced by Spiderman and Evil Dead director Sam Raimi as well as Xena: Warrior Princess producer Rob Talpert and Buffy The Vampire Slayer producer Steven DeKnight, premiered on US cable network Starz in January and was commissioned for a second season before its TX date.
andnbsp;
Spartacus: Blood and Sand stars Xena: Warrior Princess Lucy Lawless and Andy Whitfield centering around the bloody world of gladiators in the Roman Empire.
andnbsp;
The show, which is distributed globally by Starz's international sales arm, has already been sold to broadcasters including Canada's TMN, Australia's Seven Network and Holland's RTL5.
andnbsp;
The series has seen a gradual increase in ratings since its launch; its debut received 659,000 viewers with its viewership reaching over 1 million viewers for its sixth episode, a success given the channel's limited reach.]]></description>
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<title>NHNZ to launch in Abu Dhabi as part of Fox, twofour54 deal - 09/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1414</link>
<pubDate>09/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[Fox-owned documentary producer NHNZ is set to launch a production studio in the Middle East as part of a wide-ranging deal between Fox International Channels and Abu Dhabi-based media company twofour54.
andnbsp;
The production company, which is based in New Zealand, will open the office in Abu Dhabi and will team with twofour54 on the production of a number of high-end high definition and 3D documentaries.
andnbsp;
The news was announced at the Abu Dhabi Media Summit and is part of an arrangement that will also see Fox International Channels base its global online advertising network business .Fox in the region as well as moving the operational base for its Middle Eastern focused pay TV channels from Hong Kong to Abu Dhabi.
andnbsp;
The deal follows last year's launch of National Geographic Abu Dhabi, a free-to-air factual entertainment network andnbsp;that covers the entire region with programming dubbed in Arabic.
andnbsp;
The deal between Fox and twofour54 also comes weeks after Fox owner News Corp announced a deal to acquire a 9% stake for US$70 million in broadcaster Rotana Group and further signals the media company's plans to expand in the region.]]></description>
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<title>Galleon's Chelsea FC football format  picked up by ESPN Star - 08/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1411</link>
<pubDate>08/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[Super Soccer Star, the football entertainment format in which contestants compete for the chance to train at English club Chelsea, has been picked up by News Corp-backed Asian broadcaster ESPN Star Sports.
andnbsp;
ESPN and Media Star Global will produce the show, which will air on ESS channels throughout India and the Indian sub-continent.
andnbsp;
ESS has the TV rights to the upcoming soccer World Cup in South Africa and will transmit the show on Saturdays and Sundays during the tournament. The reality series will seek out the best footballers between 13 and 16 years old and two winners will travel to London to train with Chelsea.
andnbsp;
Media Star Global licenses the Indian rights to the format from UK-listed media company Galleon. The UK company produces the show with and for Chinese broadcaster Guangdong TV Sports Channel and the format has proved popular in China.
andnbsp;
Media Star Global also licenses the soccer show in the Middle East, having struck a US$375,000 deal with Galleon early last year.
andnbsp;
Galleon is extending the Super... Star franchise with the launch of a fashion-based format Super Fashion Stars. It is teaming up with IMG to make and distribute the show.
andnbsp;
andnbsp;
andnbsp;]]></description>
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<title>Moonscoop sells 350hrs of kids TV to India - 08/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1412</link>
<pubDate>08/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[Moonscoop has sold a package comprising 725 half hours of its content to Sun TV in India.
andnbsp;
In a fiercely competitive kids TV market Sun operates the Chutti TV channel and has picked up a swathe of Moonscoop titles.
andnbsp;
The Indian channel has acquired shows including Code Lyoko and Titeuf as well as Geronimo Stilton, which is a copro between Moonscoop and Italian producer Atlantyca.
andnbsp;
Other titles include SLR Productionsandrsquo; 52x11mins Gasp and 65x7mins Ava Riko Teo, a copro between Moonscoop and Character Plan.
andnbsp;
Chutti, which is a Tamil kids animation channel, also bought Bunny Maloney, Chloeandrsquo;s Closet, Flight Squad and others as part of the deal.]]></description>
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<title>The Movie Network commissions Weinstein doc - 05/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1409</link>
<pubDate>05/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[The Movie Network has commissioned a documentary based on Miramax founder Harvey Weinstein. The Astral Media-owned Canadian specialty network is financing the documentary Unauthorized: The Harvey Weinstein Project, which is produced by Canadian filmmaker Barry Avrich, who has produced Lew Wasserman film The Last Mogul as well as television series including CTV's One x One Gala and Caesar and Cleopatra. The project has drawn controversy as Weinstein, who currently runs The Weinstein Company with his brother Bob, has tried to have production on the US$1 million doc stopped. He reportedly initially tried to persuade Avrich to instead produce a doc on former Orion Pictures boss Arthur Kim and then told him Pulp Fiction director Quentin Tarantino was considering a competing project.andnbsp;
andnbsp;
The move is also significant because The Movie Network, which is a sister channel to HBO Canada, airs a number of movies from The Weinstein Company catalog as well as TV series including The Weinstein Company-produced The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.]]></description>
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<title>Studio Lambert making Benefit Busters spin-off for C4 - 05/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1410</link>
<pubDate>05/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[Studio Lambert is making The Job Mother for Channel 4, a series in which presenter Hayley Taylor helps the unemployed get their lives back on track. Taylor was the star of another Studio Lambert series for Channel 4, Benefit Busters, and her success in that paved the way for this series.
 Benefit Busters looked at the Welfare State in the UK. In the opening episode of the series, which went out last August, Taylor tutors the long-term unemployed in how to get back into the workplace and proved popular with viewers.
 "Benefit Busters was popular and one of the characters, Hayley Taylor, was so good that we developed a series with her as the presenter," Studio Lambert boss Stephen Lambert told TBIvision. "She moves in with a family and most of them have been unemployed for some time. She helps them to change their whole attitude and helps them get and prepare for job interviews."
 Lambert has a strong track record of working with UK free-to-air broadcaster Channel 4 and his production company, a joint venture with All3Media, recently won a commission for Notting Hill. Billed as a reality/documentary series it was commissioned by the broadcaster in the wake of it letting go of Big Brother and entering a period of creative renewal.
 Lambert says his company has got another big-ticket series away with Channel 4, which the broadcaster will announce within weeks.]]></description>
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<title>John de Mol's Talpa teams with Boomerang - 04/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1407</link>
<pubDate>04/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[Talpa has created a joint venture TV company with Spanish indie producer Boomerang. The 50-50 JV will sell, adapt and produce Talpa formats in Spain.
andnbsp;
The deal comes after Talpa, the Netherlands-based media company owned by John de Mol, struck a similar agreement with Warner Bros' Warner Horizon aimed at getting Talpa shows into the US. It also inked a deal with Shine, which is taking its formats into France. At MIPCOM last year Talpa announced plans to launch in Germany, France, Italy and Spain, the UK and US.
andnbsp;
Speaking about the Spanish deal John de Mol said: "Spain is a very interesting market for television and Boomerang is one of the most creative producers in this country. This company is perfect for the kind of programming Talpa develops and will produce our formats very well."
andnbsp;
Josandeacute; Abril, Boomerang's general manager said: "We are really happy with this agreement because it means we are partners of one of the most creative independent production and distribution companies worldwide."
andnbsp;
Talpa's current roster of formats includes The Golden Cage, Dating in the Dark, Viper's Nest and I Love My Country.]]></description>
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<title>All3Media picks up Cash At Your Door - 04/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1408</link>
<pubDate>04/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[All3Media International has picked up rights to Israeli format Cash At Your Door and will launch it at MIP TV next month. The show was developed by Israel's Matar Productions for Israeli free-to-air broadcaster Channel 10.
andnbsp;
All3Media said it had already optioned the format in the US and UK without disclosing further details.
andnbsp;
In the show the presenter arrives at a potential contestant's house and knocks on their front door. If they answer a question correctly and are happy for the host and production team to come into their home, the show proper begins and they are faced with a series of increasingly difficult questions that they answer for an increasing cash prize.
andnbsp;
Matar started out as Matar Productions in 1993 before teaming with advertising company McCann Erickson in 2007, creating Matar Universal.
andnbsp;
Company founder Ami Amir said: "We pitched Cash At Your Door at a time when broadcasters were very cautious about commissioning new programming.andnbsp; However, the playful, personal nature of the show and it's production efficiencies convinced Channel 10 to invest in a pilot, which quickly led to a commission for 23 episodes for Israeli audiences."
andnbsp;
Stephanie Hartog, executive VP International Formats at ALL3MEDIA International added: "Cash At Your Door is a fantastically quirky and energetic format that really gets the whole family involved, whilst also satisfying our curiosity for getting a sneaky peek around other people's homes. It is a highly cost effective and adaptable format for international markets."
andnbsp;]]></description>
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<title> Discovery weighs international launches for Oprah and Hasbro channels - 04/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1406</link>
<pubDate>04/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[Having announced yesterday its intention to roll out female-skewing cable network TLC internationally, Discovery has said it is looking at launches for the upcoming Oprah Winfrey Network and kids channel The Hub outside the US
andnbsp;
Discovery International president and CEO Mark Hollinger told TBIvision sister publication Digital TV Europe that the launch of TLC could be followed by other international services. The aim, he said, was to have three or four strong ad-supported channels in international markets.   "OWN has the potential to be a strong brand in some markets," he said. One consideration is the profile of The Oprah Winfrey Show in particular markets. He highlighted Canada as a market where it was well-received. "Whether it has broader distribution elsewhere remains to be seen," he said. In the US OWN will launch in January 2011, replacing the Discovery Health channel.  Hollinger added that Discovery also had "some international ambitions" for The Hub, which is a joint venture with Hasbro. In the US it will launch this autumn.
andnbsp;
The existing Discovery Kids channel is strong in Latin America, where Discovery stole a march on its competitors, but lack of investment in programming has acted as a brake on its development in the US and elsewhere.
andnbsp;
"Now with enhanced production investment along with Hasbro, maybe we can add a second channel in Latin America and take a kids channel to other markets," he said.
andnbsp;
The internatioanl TLC roll out starts this week with launches on Norwegian pay TV services Canal Digital, GET and Lyse. Discovery says the channel will be in 100 million himes by spring 2011.
 "We are still oriented towards affiliate revenue in our international portfolio, so we thought ad revenue was an area to go for," said Hollinger. "Except for Discovery Kids in Latin America we have not had a strong ad sales story in the international portfolio and the mission was to find that."  Hollinger said that the launch of a female-oriented channel also gave balance to a portfolio that hitherto has been predominantly male-oriented. The international launch of TLC also built on the success of the channel in the US over the last two years, which has been accompanied by the creation of a strong programme production base to support it.]]></description>
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<title>Spotify considers online video launch - 03/03/10</title>

<link>http://www.tbivision.com//article.php?category=&amp; article=1401</link>
<pubDate>03/03/10</pubDate> 

<description><![CDATA[Digital music operator Spotify is considering the launch of a video service that could rival online TV services such as Hulu and the recently launched SeeSaw.
andnbsp;
The Scandinavian company launched an ad supported music service last year and currently has over 7 million users in Europe. It also has over 250,000 users that pay to access a premium service without advertising.
andnbsp;
The technology used to run the site could be replicated to create an online video service, according to Spotify cofounder and chief executive Daniel Ek.
andnbsp;
Ek said: "The technology is the same and we are interested in the space."
andnbsp;
However, he warned that it had no immediate plans for the video roll out. "The most important thing is that we want to focus on the music [for now]."
andnbsp;]]></description>
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