Talpa Makes Russian Investment

HILVERSUM: John de Mol’s Talpa Media has picked up a minority stake in the Russian production outfit Mir Reality, founded by Vladimir Utin and Simon Tucker.

Talpa has stepped up its international expansion over the last few months, setting up joint ventures in France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Germany, the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Sweden. In Russia, Talpa becomes the first outside investor for Mir, which has built is business producing local versions of international formats, among them BBC Worldwide’s Top Gear.

Announcing the investment, de Mol noted: "Next to the fact that Russia is the biggest country in the world, it’s also Europe’s fastest-growing media market. For us the stake in Mir is a great way to establish a partnership with a top producer who already proves how to adapt BBC and other international formats to the Russian taste."

Simon Tucker, creative director at the company—and co-founder, together with Vladimir Utin, in 2006—added: "This is a brilliant opportunity for us to work closely with John de Mol, a proven hit maker, and his creative team. With Talpa John has created a very rich catalogue in a short space of time and we are looking forward to making local versions of international successes such as Dating In The Dark and I Love My Country."

In addition to producing local versions of hit formats like Dragon’s Den, Mir Reality has to its credit original daytime formats such as Zvany Ushin and Davay Poprobuem.