MUMBAI: HBO is entering into a new marketplace. It has launched a joint multi?platform video distribution venture with Parsifal International. that will serve

HBO Nordich will serve Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark.

HBO International, content distribution president Simon Sutton said, "HBO is delighted to be entering into a new marketplace and a promising partnership with Parsifal International. We look forward to working with this innovative company and making our new venture a great success." 

Parsifal will bring its expertise in the distribution of pay TV services on multiple platforms.

Parsifal International owner Peter Ekelund said, "I am very proud and excited to be a partner with HBO. The Nordic pay TV market has a tremendous growth potential for new innovative services which respond to the existing shifts in consumer viewing habits on multiple screens."

MUMBAI: History, Lifetime Networks president, GM Nancy Dubuc and One Three Media president Mark Burnett will deliver Media Mastermind keynote addresses at the television trade event Mipcom 2012, organised by Reed Midem in Cannes, France.

The event takes place from 8-11 October.

Since 2010, Dubuc has spearheaded the resurgence of Lifetime Networks as a premiere entertainment brand, introducing a new look and tagline "Your life. Your time", expanding its original programming to ratings success with movies, dramas and unscripted series.

The list includes Project Runway, Army Wives and Drop Dead Diva, Dubuc launched series and movies, including the cultural phenomenon, Dance Moms; Lifetime‘s most-watched series launch since 2009, The Client List, starring and executive produced by Jennifer Love Hewitt; and basic cable‘s most watched original movie premiere in two years, Drew Peterson: Untouchable, starring Rob Lowe.

Burnett has produced over 2,200 hours of television programming which regularly airs in over 70 countries worldwide. Current network series produced by Burnett and One Three Media, his joint venture with media conglomerate Hearst Corporation include ‘Survivor‘ (CBS), ‘The Voice‘ (NBC), ‘The Celebrity Apprentice‘ (NBC), ‘Shark Tank‘ (ABC), ‘Stars Earn Stripes‘ (NBC) and ‘The Job‘ (CBS).

Burnett also has a strong presence in award show franchises, having produced The MTV Movie Awards since 2007 and The People‘s Choice Awards, The Video Game Awards (Spike) and also produced The 63rd Primetime Emmy Awards, in 2011.

In addition to producing network and cable television series, One Three Media is focusing on media content, producing events around that content, and spinning off television shows and other programming based on Hearst brands. One Three Media has also entered the scripted series business with the hiring of longtime HBO executive Anne Thomopoulos, whose credits includeRome (HBO), Generation Kill (HBO) and Camelot (Starz).

Burnett is currently producing a 10 hour docu-drama series on The Bible with his wife, actress and producer Roma Downey, which will air on History next year, with One Three distributing the series for first-run international television. One Three and Burnett are also joining forces with Oscar-winning director James Cameron to co-create Discovery‘s upcoming new series Robogeddon.

MUMBAI: BBC Worldwide has licensed a raft of dramas to broadcasters in Central & Eastern Europe.

In total, over 530 hours have been licensed in deals to ETV, LTV, RTV, STV and TV Barrandov.

BBC Worldwide Sales and Distribution territory manager, Eastern and Central Europe and CIS Heike Renner commented, ?We?re continuing to build strong relationships with our clients in Central and Eastern Europe, and we?re very pleased to work with them to bring so many high-end programmes to viewers across the region.?

‘Parade?s End‘ has been licensed to 17 territories in the region, with HBO, a co-producer on the series, set to give the drama its territory premiere on its pan-regional feed.

The epic drama has also been licensed as part of package deals to RTV in Slovenia, LTV in Latvia, ETV in Estonia and STV in Slovakia, as have Sinbad to TV Barrandov in the Czech Republic, STV, and Call the Midwife to LTV, STV.

Other dramas picked up range from ‘Scott And Bailey; series one and two to RTV, ‘Inside Men‘ to STV and TV Barrandov, and the second season of ‘Upstairs Downstairs‘ to LTV and ETV.

The deals also take in factual titles such as Earthflight (ETV), natural history show ‘Deadly 60‘ (series 1 to STV) and entertainment programmes including ‘Beyonc?: Live at Roseland‘ (ETV).

Renner said, ?The programmes licensed in these deals reflect the breadth of our catalogue, from top quality dramas to some exciting new female-skewing lifestyle and music titles.?

MUMBAI: Global entertainment company Content Media Corporation has acquired a 50 per cent stake in New York-based production company Jigsaw Productions, further adding to the company?s growing investment portfolio.

The agreement will see Content investing in Jigsaw and working closely with founder Alex Gibney to build a diversified Production Company operating across film and television.

Content will invest in Jigsaw and it will add additional staff, expand development and increase its production output. Content?s film, television and digital divisions will act as international distributor for Jigsaw?s programmes when appropriate.

Jigsaw has produced documentary films, such as ?Taxi to the Dark Side?; ?Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer?; ?Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room? and ?Magic Trip?.

Jigsaw and Gibney have also produced episodic television, such as The Blues with Martin Scorsese and David Halberstam?s The Fifties.

Jigsaw president Alex Gibney said, ?We have a prolific documentary production business here at Jigsaw, and I have wanted for some time to expand into episodic television, international rights and additional fiction projects. Content?s investment in Jigsaw and its sales platform and management team will give me the resources to do that. I am very excited about our next steps and the future of Jigsaw, and am delighted to be in business with Content and its great team.?

Content CEO John Schmidt said, ?This new partnership is a further example of our continued strategy to expand our portfolio through collaborations with world-renowned producers. We have admired Alex Gibney and his work at Jigsaw for many years. With Alex as a visionary director and producer at the helm, the company has gained a well-deserved reputation as one of the world?s greatest documentary companies. Jigsaw has also generated great episodic television over the years, and we look forward to providing Alex with the support and resources to grow and expand production across a variety of genres.?

Content Media Corporation is based in London and Los Angeles and operates in the areas of film, television and digital rights. This new agreement with Jigsaw adds to Content?s investment stakes in several companies, including Collins Avenue, a reality television Production Company founded by Jeff Collins and based in Los Angeles; Phase Four Films, a film distribution company based in Toronto and operating in the North American market; and Spirit digital media, a digital studio founded by Peter Cowley and based in London and Los Angeles.

The companies will collaborate on a variety of on-going projects, including an upcoming project for HBO that is produced and directed by Gibney; Untitled Eagles Project, a documentary on the legendary band, produced by Gibney and directed by Alison Ellwood; Finding Fela!, a documentary on the Nigerian singer; and 740 Park Avenue, a documentary in the series ?Why Poverty?? Jigsaw is also currently developing two originally scripted feature films, as well as a miniseries based on the book Black Banners by Ali Soufan.

MUMBAI: The television industry was in a new golden age, said Warner Bros. Television Group president Bruce Rosenblum.

The best platform for launching a new show is broadcast television. "You want your comedies on CBS on Monday and your promos inside the highest-rated shows. The more we can draw people to broadcast TV the better it is for our studio business," said Rosenblum, while speaking at the television technology and trade event Nab in Las Vegas.

The TV business has never been better. "Revenue from international has improved dramatically. The domestic broadcast, cable and syndication businesses are at a high point and there are new buyers in the market like Netflix and Hulu that are boosting the value of their libraries and new productions," he said.

International markets are playing a key role in reducing deficits between the cost of producing shows and the licence fees paid by the networks. "Even in a global financial crisis, we have had five years of meaningful increases to the point where the revenue from international more than covers the production costs of our entire sales of 26 shows".

Rosenblum estimates that more than 85 per cent of Time Warner?s profitability comes from Turner, HBO and the studio?s TV Group. Warner Bros. gets roughly half of its profits from TV. "Anything we can do to preserve that ecosystem and keep the consumer in an authenticated environment helps us," he averred.

He also said that social media is playing a bigger role in marketing efforts. "I haven?t seen Facebook and Twitter having an impact yet on what gets selected. Where Facebook and Twitter can help is when you have shows that are on bubble. Several shows have gotten renewed because networks were aware of how much chatter was out there."

MUMBAI: English movie channel HBO will launch the fourth season of ?Hollywood Premiere League (HPL)on 16 April. The films will be aired 11:15 pm onwards every night.

The two-month long festival will offer blockbusters soon after the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches get over.

HPL will showcase films like ?Clash Of The Titans?, ?Speedy Singhs?, ?No Strings Attached? and ?Jonah Hex?. The initiative will also have interactivity both on-air and online. On-air, HBO has introduced the HPL Master Blaster Contest, a six-week long watch-and-win, where the participants have a chance at winning a cool latest Ipad. The contest is being promoted on air and is integrated with the broadcaster?s social media community.

In addition, the on-air properties include "HPL- Matches of the week"- a ready menu of the matches of the week for viewers and "HPL Memories" - capturing the most memorable moments from HPL movies.

Further, HBO?s social community which is heading to 750,000 users at present, is actively working on a deeper social media engagement. HPL was announced in the social media domain beginning of the month highlighting the on-air promotions ahead of its fourth edition roll-out. The Facebook users will be able to create their own HPL Dream-Team through a user integrated application.

Along the with Dream-Team application, fans can create their own cheerleaders to support the Dream ?Team. Additionally, the user has options to, ?brush up your cricket lingos? and ?tweet the name of your favourite movie.

HPL will see large scale promotions on various English TV channels, a well-placed outdoor campaign and radio promotions in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore in addition to multi-faceted social media and digital plan.

Dove is the title sponsor, Make my Trip as the presenting sponsor and Coke and Colgate the associate sponsors on HPL.