Top Stories

BURBANK/MUNICH: NBC has placed an order for 12 half-hour episodes of the SevenOne hidden-camera format Benidorm Bastards, to air under the local total Off Their Rockers, with Betty White set to host. Kinetic Content, the new company backed by ProSiebenSat.1’s Red …

NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/LONDON: Vinessa Antoine, who has appeared on Being Erica and Soul Food, has signed on to a recurring role in season two of Haven, Entertainment One’s series for Syfy in the U.S., Showcase in Canada and Universal Networks International. Antoine …

UNIVERSAL CITY: NBCUniversal’s drama series Downton Abbey has been sold into more than 100 territories outside of North America, with recent deals in Australia and the Middle East. Set in an Edwardian country house in 1912, Downton Abbey spotlights the …

CANNES: There are more than 65 exhibitor companies from Spain expected at this year’s MIPTV, with Audiovisual from Spain highlighting a range of Spanish independent film productions, animation, TV and multiplatform services. Coming with a slate of documentary titles and …

HONG KONG/SINGAPORE: Turner Broadcasting System Asia Pacific has secured first-look rights to new original productions from Singaporean outfit Scrawl Studios. The multi-year agreement was signed with Singapore’s Media Development Authority (MDA) and the animation house. Scrawl output will potentially air on …

LONDON: CAKE has wrapped up a new round of deals on Coolabi’s animated preschool show Poppy Cat. Among the new broadcasters that have signed up for the 52×11-minute series are Al Jazeera Children’s Channel, e-vision (U.A.E), SVT (Sweden), S4C (Wales), …

LONDON: The prime-time quiz show Secret Fortune has scored ten new production deals, secured through DRG. The format will be produced locally in France with Starling, as well as in Australia by Shine, in Finland by Nordisk Film & TV, …

LONDON: Endemol’s The Money Drop is headed to Brazil, the Netherlands and Italy, with 17 territories having now signed up for local versions of the game show. Canale 5 in Italy has commissioned the show for prime time. In the …

HONG KONG: TV5MONDE has launched a third feed in the Asia Pacific, for Southeast Asian markets, as well as added Vietnamese subtitles to the French-language network. TV5MONDE’s CEO, Marie-Christine Saragosse, was in Hanoi for the launch of the third satellite feed …

PARIS: American Express is the recipient of the first-ever MIPTV Brand of the Year award, recognized for its commitment and innovation in the field of branded entertainment. American Express ranked as the 24th most valuable brand of the year in …