World Screen

PREMIUM: The chairman of CANAL+ Group, Bertrand Meheut, talks to TV Europe about the impact CANAL+ has had on the French media industry and his plans for the company’s future—always maintaining a commitment to quality and innovation. TV EUROPE: Since its launch in 1984, how has CANAL+ changed and improved …

SILVER SPRING: Discovery Networks Western Europe has appointed Mertijn De Nooijer, who heads up the company’s affiliate business in Benelux, to the new role of VP of affiliate for Western Europe. The announcement comes on the heels of a decision to merge the distribution teams across Eurosport and Discovery’s Western …

MILAN: Sky and Telecom Italia have inked a new deal to broadcast Sky channels dedicated to UEFA Champions League matches and UEFA Euro 2016 qualifiers on TIM’s 3G and 4G networks. The games will be available to TIM customers on smartphones and tablets through mobile broadband and ultrabroadband networks, as …

LONDON: FremantleMedia International’s diverse slate of MIPCOM offerings is set to include high-end dramas, comedies and documentaries. On the scripted front, the company will offer The Returned, Acquitted, Blue, Lord and Master and two seasons of Suspects. Comedies include Birds of a Feather, two seasons of Cuckoo, and the fourth …

STOCKHOLM: Modern Times Group's (MTG) president and CEO, Jørgen Madsen Lindemann, has been elected as co-chairman of CTC Media, while MTG CFO Mathias Hermansson has re-joined the CTC Media board as a director. MTG non-executive board member Lorenzo Grabau is stepping down from his role as the co-chairman and a …

LONDON: Zodiak Rights has signed a first-look development deal with the French production company Memento and will bring a range of the outfit's programming to MIPCOM. Memento specializes in factual programming as well as feature films. The first programs to come from the Zodiak and Memento deal is The Insider, …

LONDON: Starting next year, Sky Sports is set to air Monday Night Football as part of a new five-year agreement with the NFL. The network’s additional American football coverage will include more than 80 live fixtures a season, including up to five games per week during regular season, the playoffs …

LONDON: Sophie Turner Laing, former managing director of content at BSkyB, has been tapped to lead a new TV production group that will be formed through the merger of Endemol, Shine and Core Media. Turner Laing left BSkyB in May; she had been with the company since 2003. Rupert Murdoch's …

CANNES: After achieving high ratings in Italy, Atresmedia’s daily soap opera The Secret of Old Bridge is ready to conquer new territories, says José Antonio Salso, the company’s head of sales and acquisitions. “We have received a lot of interest from inter­national buyers, especially from Eastern Europe,” he adds. “More …

CANNES: Following on the success of Ruby Red, TM International is launching Sapphire Blue at MIPCOM. The new feature film is based on the second part of the best-selling Precious Stone book trilogy by Kerstin Gier. Carlos Hertel, the head of international sales at TM International, believes that the cast …