Endemol Unveils New Consumer Products Initiatives

HILVERSUM, June 15: To support key brands such as Deal
or No Deal and Big Brother, Endemol International
will be unveiling a slate of new consumer products initiatives at Licensing
Show in New York.

“The first step was a move toward taking a more
strategic approach to this business, which allows the group to capitalize on
the success of some of our major TV formats,” said Tim Collins, Endemol
International’s head of consumer products. “Once we identified the right
categories of tie-ins we believe were appropriate for each property, from
games, theme park attractions, music CDs or mobile applications, we could then
actively pursue partnerships with licensees and retailers. Endemol has offices
and joint ventures in 24 countries, which allows us to have a tremendous
advantage in being able to work with local companies. The key was to become
more proactive. In some markets we have increased our local investment and
strengthened the in-house team and in other cases we have appointed agents. We
have also invested in the creative resources available, from traditional style
guides to ensuring that photography from a TV show is available for the tie-in
book deal.”

Highlights of the Deal or No Deal program
include board games, electronic handheld and tabletop game formats, interactive
DVD games, promotional tie-ins, publishing and apparel. Many of these products
will launch during the third quarter of this year. The hit game show format is
on the air in 45 markets.

For the cooking game show Ready Steady Cook,
saucepans, textiles and accessories are available in the U.K., Australia, the
Netherlands and Italy. Further products in the pipeline include cookery books
and gifts as well as distinct ranges for Italy and Australia.

New product ideas for Big Brother include
electronics, interiors and gaming, and Endemol is extending the Miss France brand
with health, beauty, apparel and accessories categories in Asia.

“At Endemol we reach hundreds of millions of people
through our TV shows, the majority of which are on prime-time terrestrial
networks,” Collins noted. “The key in being able to unlock the potential
spin-offs is to invest and focus on the major properties.”