World Screen

LONDON: Of the top 50 most-watched shows on Channel 4 in 2012, 37 of them, or 74 percent, were new commissions, among them The Undateables, Derek and Stephen Fry: Gadget Man. Of the top 30 programs of the year on Channel 4, 22 of them, or 77 percent, were new …

LONDON: BT Sport has chosen Sunset+Vine to produce its live coverage of Premier League football matches, signing a contract worth £100 million. Sunset+Vine, part of the Tinopolis group, was behind Channel 4’s London 2012 Paralympics coverage. It also produces ESPN’s Premiership rugby. Sunset+Vine will produce BT’s live rugby union Aviva …

STOCKHOLM: Modern Times Group has completed its acquisition of the remaining 49-percent stake in the Danish joint-venture company TV 2 Sport from TV 2 Denmark. The transaction received the necessary regulatory approval from the Danish Competition Authority. Part of the pact includes the transfer of the exclusive Danish broadcast rights to …

WARSAW: Atmedia has established a new TV viewing measurement tool for Poland, SpotLight, in cooperation with UPC Polska and Nielsen. The new TV ratings survey will be the largest in Poland and one of the largest in Europe. The service will provide minute-by-minute monitoring of viewer behavior from more than 12,000 Polish …

LUXEMBOURG: Frank Hoffmann has been named managing director of RTL Television, while Bernd Reichart, currently the managing director for multichannel at Grupo Antena 3, succeeds him as managing director of Vox. Hoffmann’s move from Vox to RTL Television takes place February 1, 2013. He has been the MD of Vox since …

LONDON: BBC Four has placed an order for Bob Servant Independent, a new comedy series starring Brian Cox, which is slated to premiere in the new year. Bob Servant Independent focuses on a man named Bob Servant who is running for office in the Scottish town of Broughty Ferry. Jonathan Watson, …

GENEVA: There are 39 European public broadcasters that are participating in the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest, which will take place in May. The 58th Eurovision Song Contest is set for May 14, 16 and 18, 2013, in the Swedish city of Malmö. Every year since 2004, between 36 and 43 …

PREMIUM: Sunday night was movie night in major European markets, as Hollywood titles cleaned up at the top of the ratings. In France, the number one program was TF1’s showing of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe from Disney with 4.716 million viewers and a …

LONDON: For the first time ever, digital sales of music, video and games exceeded £1 billion in the U.K., according to the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA). For the year, digital sales of music, video and games in the country amassed £1.033 billion. This total is 11.4-percent more than the 2011 …

HONG KONG: As of today, Bigfoot Venture’s Fashion One, a global fashion, entertainment and lifestyle channel, is being carried by Germany’s KabelKiosk. This launch follows Fashion One’s deal with Eutelsat Germany to distribute the channel to cable operators in continental Europe. The channel will be offered in high-definition to cable …