Talpa & Sony in Format Tie-Up for MENA Region

LONDON: The recently established Sony Pictures Television Arabia and Talpa Media have struck an agreement to co-produce formats in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

SPT Arabia has the exclusive right to jointly produce with Talpa all of the Dutch outfit’s international formats across multiple genres throughout the region. This includes formats such as The Voice Of…, The Golden Cage, Dating in the Dark, Viper’s Nest, Pretty Smart, Guesstimation, I Love My Country and Divided, among others. The joint activities of both companies within the agreement are overseen and managed by SPT Arabia’s Ziad Kebbi.

Pim Schmitz, Talpa’s CEO, said: “For Talpa Media, this agreement is as rational as it is effective. Numerous broadcasters in North Africa and the Middle East have shown interest in our TV formats in the past and continue to do so. Ziad Kebbi is familiar with Talpa’s formats and has an extensive track record in the region. In SPT Arabia, Talpa Media has found exactly the right partner for this fast growing region.”

Kees Abrahams, the president of international production at SPT, added: “This agreement is an important development for SPT as a producer with a growing formats presence in the Middle East and North Africa. Talpa already has a number of highly successful and established TV brands in the region and we look forward to working with them to expand that success and deliver to local broadcasters the high quality programming that viewers expect.”