FOX & MarVista’s Fernando Szew Talks AVOD & Distribution Opportunities

Fernando Szew, the CEO of FOX Entertainment Global and MarVista Entertainment, spoke at Content Americas about new opportunities in the AVOD space, what the companies are looking for in co-production partners and the challenges for content distribution in an increasingly competitive landscape.

The conversation started with Szew speaking about FOX Entertainment Global since its launch last October at MIPCOM. “The launch was better than expected because of the positive reception we received from many potential partners,” he said. “We are building an infrastructure to monetize the content [we own].”

Commenting on the goals outlined in his new role as CEO, Szew stated that one of the priorities is to reposition FOX as an international player in the content world. “This is a goal shared with very high-level people with whom I am proud to collaborate. We [have] different content pillars within FOX Entertainment, and each of them is generating important content.”

He added: “The goal is to be able to offer that to the world, to relearn in this new dynamic how to monetize it and how to partner with people to generate more content for our internal platforms. But the message is clear: We are open for business with everyone. We have a competitive advantage in that we are independent, [and furthermore, advantages with] what we can do with the network, with the AVOD Tubi platform, and with the [product] offering at MarVista.”

Szew elaborated on his business perspective at MarVista, which he integrated into his position at FOX Entertainment Global, where the idea “was not just to sell but also try to attract relationships to generate content together. A lot of the big studios and platforms that generate content globally, but primarily from the U.S., were retaining their [assets].”

Regarding the type of co-production partners the company is looking for, Szew said they want to establish partnerships in all areas. “We are open to the entire process of content creation, production, distribution, and financing. That is part of MarVista’s DNA, but now we have a more robust financial capacity, and different rules apply. If something works for the [FOX] network, obviously, we will want it for the channel, but it’s only a small portion for the prime-time slot. We are building more production and distribution capacities.”

Szew then addressed the importance of the Spanish-speaking market. “It’s one of the key elements of our international expansion,” he said. “FOX Entertainment leveraged what we were doing at MarVista, which was a significant international venture into production. At FOX Entertainment, our [interest] lies in establishing relations with important partners in different parts of the world, and Latin America is part of that.”

The company is focusing on Spanish-language content, particularly movies. “At the production level right now [we are looking for] movies. This is where we are bringing the [expertise] that MarVista has with made-for-TV movies. We want to integrate that expertise into Spanish-language content.”

Szew spoke about the challenges that the media industry could be facing in the short and medium term, particularly with the potential arrival of a new global recession. “Changes are coming, and they’re something we already considered when we launched FOX Entertainment Global,” he said. “The world is going to want to collaborate again because that’s the only way to make good content.”

He added: “You learn by taking risks. There is a positive element involved especially when you’re working with a team. When a team can commit to taking a risk, and things start to go well, you learn. That is what always attracted me to this evolving industry.”

The conversation concluded with Szew discussing the opportunities for the next 12 to 18 months. “FOX has a competitive advantage right now. It has [brand power] and a very good capital structure that can handle the current financial climate. I think there are great opportunities coming up in the AVOD space, and we are working closely with the team. AVOD is a lucrative market. We have to start feeding it content and making it grow. This is good news for content creators.”