Distraction Completes Raft of Post-MIPTV Deals

MONTREAL, May 21:
Distraction has finalized deals on a slew of programs, including its Ripe
Digital Entertainment catalogue, in markets such as Europe, the Middle East and
South America, among others.

The reality entertainment
format The Big Experiment,
which has been sold in Denmark to the Danish Broadcasting Corporation, has now
been picked up for the rest of Scandinavia by Nordisk, to launch in prime time
this fall. Endemol France also picked up the series.

The Next Great Leader, which was recently sold in Germany to ZDF, has
picked up further deals in Ukraine and the Middle East, while TV Diaries closed a deal in the U.S. with FOX, going into
pilot production for a prime-time slot. Meanwhile, Ripe Digital Entertainment,
Distraction’s male-skewing multiplatform channel package, has sold in France to
ABDA.

Distraction also closed
deals for two of its eco-oriented formats: Eco House: The Challenge was sold in Latin America and How Clean is Your
Planet? was picked up in Poland.
The game shows Trade Up, Ciao
Darwin and Pop Club have been sold to Benelux (Mas Media), Romania and
Malaysia, respectively. The lifestyle shows Love it or Lose it and Makeover Wish, originally produced by Peace Arch Entertainment,
have been acquired in France by NRJ, while Kenny vs Spenny received renewals in the Netherlands (BNN) and
Poland (TV4).

Distraction’s president
and founder, Michel Rodrigue, commented: “Not only has Distraction’s MIP slate been well received,
but many other formats from our expansive catalogue are also generating a lot
of sales activity following MIPTV. In particular is Ripe Digital, which has
been the subject of strong interest from a number of countries around the world
lately; the French sale is the start of things to come for Ripe Digital, which
will keep us very busy over the summer.”

—By Kristin
Brzoznowski