Peter Safran, Microsoft in Xbox Deal

LOS ANGELES, March 31:
Microsoft has inked a deal for the Hollywood producer Peter Safran to develop
original short-form content for distribution through the Xbox 360 gaming
platform.

Safran is a former
president of Brillstein-Grey Entertainment and for the last two years has run
his own firm, the Safran Company, a production and talent management outfit
whose roster of clients includes Sean Combs, Nia Vardalos and the Epic Movie filmmakers Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer.

According to the New
York Times, the content,
downloadable via Xbox Live to be viewed using the Xbox 360 console, will
initially be scripted shows of under 10 minutes per episode. Safran told the Times he will initially focus on comedy and horror for
Xbox’s target 14 to 34 demo, skewing more towards males.

The Xbox Live service,
which currently features a host of third-party content, has about 10 million
subscribers, the Times reports.

—By Mansha Daswani