Florin Nicoara

World Screen Weekly, June 19, 2008

Programming Director

Antena 1

For the last few years, the Intact Media Group has been rapidly expanding its reach in the Romanian media market. The company, headquartered in Bucharest, operates a bouquet of TV networks, two radio stations, a production outfit and newspapers and magazines.

Its TV channels are led by the flagship Antena 1, which reaches almost 80 percent of the country and alternates at the top of the rankings with rival Pro TV. Antena 2, the newest addition, programs a slate of talk shows about society, politics and culture; Antena 3 features news and current affairs; and Antena 4 (also known as Euforia Lifestyle TV) targets women.

According to Florin Nicoara, the strategy for the Antena bouquet is “to put together a strong and distinctive slate of local and acquired programs for each of the channels. Unlike the pan-European/international companies that are using the same programming on several channels in the same territories, we schedule completely different programs on each channel. This is in order to build up original brands, unique products that can increase their own base of loyal viewers without taking away from Antena 1’s general public.”

Original content, either commissioned from independent producers, co-produced with third-party broadcasters or produced in house at Intact Production, has been the driving force at the Antena channels, Nicoara says. “Local production accounts for up to 85 percent of the schedules, depending on each channel’s specific theme.” That will continue, Nicoara notes, adding, “The allocated budget is also getting higher and higher.”

Investment in high-quality content across the portfolio of stations is key, Nicoara continues. “Competition in Romania’s TV market is fierce,” he says. “In the past three years it has changed from the station-versus-station case to media holding versus media holding. We have strong reasons to hope that 2009 will place Antena channels on the first rank in terms of total market share.”

To achieve this, “huge investments” are being made this year in “new studios, technical facilities, sports program rights, movie deals and well-adapted international formats, alongside a more aggressive marketing approach.”

Nicoara has witnessed firsthand the gains made by Antena 1 since its launch, in 1993,. as Romania’s first commercial TV station. He began at the station in ad sales before eventually landing in the programming division. Working in TV, Nicoara says, “was the dream come true. You never get bored doing programming at a TV station. Every day, every month, every year is completely different, and whatever worked last season needs a new approach in the new one. And when you think you have seen it all, a new challenge is on the table. It keeps you alive.”

—By Mansha Daswani