International Emmy Awards for Breaking News and for Continuing News Coverage

New York, September 25, 2006 – The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced today the 2006 International Emmy® Award Winners for its two News categories, Breaking News and Continuing News Coverage.

“London Bombings July 7th, 2005”- Sky News’ (UK) live coverage of the terrorist bombings in London- won the International Emmy® Award for Breaking News. “Hunting for Taliban”-the story of a platoon of US soldiers in the remote mountain region of south-east Afghanistan- produced by NOVA/NPS/VARA Television (Netherlands) won the International Emmy® Award for Continuing News Coverage.

This is the second year in a row that programs from the United Kingdom and The Netherlands win in each category. “Television journalists are risking their lives more and more to get the story and bring the news to the television screen,” said Bruce L. Paisner, President & CEO of the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, also President of Hearst Entertainment. “The International Academy is proud to be saluting these professionals for their outstanding work.”

Nominees for nine other International Emmy® Awards categories will be announced October 9, at Mipcom, in Cannes, France. Winners will receive their awards at the 34th International Emmy® Awards Gala, November 20, in New York City.

Reality Oversea Merger: Eyeworks and 3 Ball Prods.

Rumours were aflout, that Eyeworks and 3 Ball Prods. are going to merge. 3 Ball Prods. are known for producing "The Biggest Loser" partnered with Reveille and 25/7 Prods., which is still going strong on NBC. That was followed by a collaboration with Katalyst on "Beauty and the Geek," which returns for a third cycle next year on new network the CW. Other 3 Ball Prods. include VH1's "Breaking Bonaduce" and "Super Group"; Fox's "Unanimous"; and Discovery Kids' "Endurance."

Eyeworks has successful formats such as "Test the Nation" and "Who Wants to Marry My Son?"

Josef Adalian, Reality titans tying the knot - Eyeworks catches 3 Ball,
said on Variety.com (2006/09/26)

"Dutch reality factory Eyeworks is shelling out a large eight-figure sum
for 3 Ball Prods., the production company behind "Beauty and the Geek"
and "The Biggest Loser."Pact calls for Eyeworks to take a 50% stake in the U.S. company, with 3
Ball founders J.D. Roth and Todd Nelson becoming major equity holders in
Eyeworks. Roth and Nelson will continue to run 3 Ball, working in
partnership with Eyeworks founder-CEO Reinout Oerlemans.

Deal instantly transforms midsize U.S. production house 3 Ball into a
potential international player. In addition to giving 3 Ball "some
working capital to scale the company up," Roth said the ties to Eyeworks
means his company will now have the ability to test and grow formats
overseas -- a big advantage when pitching projects to U.S. networks.

"We really need to have a pipeline going both ways to grow our
business," Roth said. "This lets us create a laboratory for our ideas.
If a network says, 'We like this show, but we want to know more,' we can
say, 'We'll put it on in New Zealand, and it won't cost you a dime.' "

Roth said 3 Ball is now "a complete turnkey operation. We can create,
sell, produce and distribute ideas internationally."

Eyeworks is the No. 2 TV producer in Holland, behind only Endemol, with
Oerlemans estimating his company's sales last year at about $200
million. Now that the company has a toehold in the U.S. -- along with
Germany, Belgium, Sweden and New Zealand -- Oerlemans said he next plans
to extend the Eyeworks brand to Blighty, France and Italy.

"We want to be in important territories, and we want to be creative
players that come up with new, fresh formats," he said, outlining plans
for a global "family" of reality companies where ideas are freely
traded. (...)"

Read the whole story on Variety.com

Ultimate Blackjack Tour v. Game Show Network

US company Ultimate Blackjack Tour (UBT), creator of the TV gambling
format of the same name that goes to air on CBS this fall, has filed a
lawsuit against cable channel GSN over alleged format theft.

The long list of allegations in the lawsuit, filed in the LA Supreme
Court on Tuesday by UBT's attorneys Andrew White, David Fink and Amanda Leith of White O'Connor Curry in Los Angeles, includes breach of implied contract, breach of confidence, unfair competition and unjust enrichment in connection with GSN's show, World Series of Blackjack.

Read more on C21media.net

After initially declining to comment on the matter, GSN issued a brief statement Friday that, in its entirety, read:

“This lawsuit is completely baseless and without merit, and we will be vindicated in court.”

More on Mediaweek.com

The case is Ultimate Blackjack Tour v. Game Show Network, BC356637, The HollywoodReporter said.

Art of Pitching

Das Wall Street Journal berichtet am 12. August 2006 über eine andere Art der Formatentwicklung. Piloten, die eigentlich nur für das Pitching gedacht sind, gelangen über diverse Umwege über Tauschbörsen zu den Zuschauern. So passiert mit dem TV-Piloten “Nobody’s Watching”:

“In many cases, the pilots appear to have been “ripped” from official DVDs made for reviewers and company executives.

It’s unclear whether the leaks resulted from security breaches or quiet efforts to promote the shows. In either case, Internet leaks can sometimes pay off for TV shows. In June, a TV pilot called “Nobody’s Watching,” which the WB network had passed on, was leaked to the video-sharing site YouTube. It generated enough of an audience online that NBC decided to pick up the show for development.

At least four of CBS’s fall pilots have been circulated on the Web, a development that CBS spokesman Chris Ender calls “both flattering and frightening.” He adds: “We’re pleased that there’s an early demand for our shows but the marketing benefits can’t excuse what is illegal theft of our programming.”

In diesem Fall ist der Spagat zwischen Geheimnisschutz und Offenlegung gut gegangen. Vielleicht ist das die neue Kunst des Pitchings?

Zum ganzen Beitrag geht es hier: WSJ.com - Online: Fall TV

Comeback der Serienformate?

Schaut man nach Amerika, so scheint die Zeit der Shows - insbesondere die der Reality-Shows - vorbei zu sein. Jedenfalls nach Meinung von USA Today (14.8.2006):

“… Promise appears to have overshadowed potential drawbacks. Networks are rolling out the largest number of continuing stories in recent memory. ABC’s The Nine and Day Break, CBS’ Jericho and NBC’s Kidnapped join Vanished as dramas with mysteries that will unfold over the season.

They join a broad range of series, from soapy Desperate Housewives to veteran ER, that feature some form of continuing stories that demand — and often reward — a degree of weekly vigilance from viewers.

“We’re all going to learn a lot about what works and what doesn’t,” says Fox entertainment chief Peter Liguori.

TV executives say this is likely the peak year for serials, and NBC entertainment chief Kevin Reilly acknowledges there are probably more than viewers can handle. But he considers the surplus a healthy sign. “We should applaud the range of creativity. It would be more distressing for the business if we had a lot of traditional franchise shows.” (USA Today 2006/8/14)

Zum ganzen Beitrag geht es hier: USATODAY.com - TV gambles on more serials

Format Guide

Die BBC bittet um Zusendung von Programmvorschlägen und stellt dafür einen Format Guide zur Verfügung: BBC - Commissioning - Proposal Requirements

Die BBC hat sich dem Code of Practice for submission of Programme Proposals as agreed between the Alliance for the Protection of Copyright and BBC, ITV, C4 and Channel 5 verpflichtet.

Aus Grundy Television und Crackerjack wird Fremantle Media Australia

Der Trend geht weiter: Die beiden Töchter von Fremantle Grundy Television und Crackerjack werden zusammen Fremantle Media Australia. Zum bisherigen Katalog der beiden Produktionsfirmen gehören erfolgreiche Formate wie “Temptation”, “Australian Idol 2006″, “Neighbours”, “Family Feud“, “The Biggest Loser” oder “Jamie’s Kitchen Australia”. „Der Zusammenschluss bringt ein dynamisches Unternehmen für einen sich verändernden Markt hervor – in diesem Fall ergibt eins und eins tatsächlich drei”, so die Überzeugung von Mark Fennessy. (benet)

Gefunden im BeNet
Eine Anmerkung zu The Biggest Loser: Die Show ist eine Produktion von Reveille Production, produziert für NBC. Reveille Production hat hierfür den FRAPA Reality Show Format Award 2006 erhalten. The Biggest Loser Australia ist eine Produktion von crackerjack und FremantleMedia für ten