International Insider: European C-Suite Turbulence

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Euro-Head Turbulence

Shareholder strike: The fight at the top of some of Europe's biggest content producers will be hugely important. Streaming has shaken the European television sector to its core in recent years, with companies such as ProSiebenSat.1 MediaMediaForEurope (EASY) And Mediapro are rethinking their strategies to pivot to the digital revolution. Perhaps no network epitomized this struggle better than Germany's ProSieben, which has spent much of the last two years transforming its massive broadcast lineup to become a digital business centered around jack-of-all-trades streamer Joyn. Shareholders have complained about the speed of progress and simultaneously welcomed the change in strategy while demanding the business increase what is left of its overnight audience share. Following the takeover of MFE's business last month – a process that seemed to take forever – questions were asked about the direction in which MFE, led by the Berlusconi family, wanted to go. In an interview I conducted with ProSieben's head of content and networks Henrik Pabst at MIPCOM last week, he said talks would soon begin with the new owners about how things could develop, while insisting that there was no editorial intervention at this stage. Things may be different now as this week's MFE unexpectedly cleared ProSieben management and replacing ProSieben's respected CEO Bert Habets with its own CFO, Marco Giordani. The CFO as CEO often points to a major restructuring, so we'll see. ProSieben wasn't the only European media giant to embrace change this week, Tacho Benet said. resigned as CEO and chairman of Spanish production giant Mediapro after 25 years. His departure means none of the original founders will remain at the company, and reports suggest former Movistar director Sergio Osle is poised to replace him. Benet, whose role in turning the Catalan giant into a major sport cannot be underestimated, would have known his post was under threat after Mediapro lost a long-standing contract to produce La Liga football matches. He is leaving following an agreement with Hong Kong-based majority shareholder SouthWind. Changes are definitely happening.

Studios Bet $1 Billion SkyShowtime

HeavenShow me the money: SkyShowtime, the European streamer, has always been a unique beast. Launched during a pandemic, at the height of the global streamer fever, by Comcast And Paramountit has sought to gain popularity in mainland Europe and slot in alongside the likes of Netflix, Prime Video and Disney+ through a mix of studio productions from its parents and local originals that others may not produce. Little has been reported about its financial health, but Jake reported this week that Comcast has invested at least £573 million ($767 million) since launch, while Paramount has invested $246 million, meaning expenses exceed $1 billion. There are caveats – some of it may be the creative internal accounting that Hollywood is famous for, with sales rising year on year – but UK documents show SkyShowtime reporting huge losses in 2022, 2023 and 2024. SkyShowtime believes it operates in line with other streamers and is committed to investing in 10 original series per year, as well as giving subscribers access to series such as Yellowstone And Iris Case. With Paramount among the obvious contenders for Warner Bros. Discovery, as well as upcoming corporate changes, the question is what role SkyShowtime will play in the media landscape of tomorrow. Read the report Here.

AI presenters

Gaban, headlines: Another AI for the first time this weekas Channel 4 became the first UK broadcaster to have an AI-generated program presenter. “Journalist” Aisha Gaban revealed her status only at the end Departures current affairs program Will AI take my job?. It was the kind of deliberately provocative stunt that the channel built its reputation on, and personally, I want to see more TV shows that live up to my expectations. Of course, the Tilly Norwood debate continues in Hollywood. We had follow-up report to Gaban's debut, with Channel 4 news chief Louise Compton saying the UK network will continue to experiment with artificial intelligence, with various news presenters and agents weighing in on what it all means for future production. Jonathan Shalit, chairman of the InterTalent Rights Group, which represents the likes of Susanna Reid, spoke positively of Channel 4's stunt, telling us: “I would tell people: 'Instead of looking at AI as an enemy, look at it as a new friend.'

Sarkozy in prison

Former leader locked up: There was a time when Nicolas Sarkozy was one of the most powerful politicians in Europe, and 13.3 million people watched his victory in the 2007 French elections. The cameras returned 18 years later under very different circumstances.when the disgraced former president went to serve a five-year sentence at La Santé prison in Paris. He was found guilty of conspiring to collect funds from late Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi to finance his campaign and became the first French leader since World War II to be jailed. Channels in France and around the world reveled in his last moments of freedom, filming him leaving his posh Parisian home to go to prison. Be that as it may, Sarkozy protests his innocence and claims that he was the victim of a political ploy. Right-wing media supports his position. On the other hand, the investigative news site Mediapart, which first reported Sarkozy's ties to Libya, and other progressive outlets have published scathing editorials about his behavior. It turns out that among the few things he will have at Le Sant is a television and a copy Count of Monte Cristoa famous book about a man unjustly imprisoned.

Proudfoot Striker

“Look” at Ghana: Diana Lodderhos this week published an interview with the Oscar-winning director behind his feature-length documentary. Ghana's eyesat the London Film Festival earlier this year. With Barack and Michelle Obama among the executive producers, Proudfoot's film follows Chris Hess, a nine-year-old photographer who photographed African revolutionary leader Kwame Nkrumah. The document details Nkrumah's rise to become Ghana's first president in the 1950s and how he inspired broader African liberation. “His history was deliberately erased in the West,” Proudfoot tells Diana. This is because the producers are behind it. Shark Lembe recently told me about their series – that it was created in part to correct years of tainted history about the legendary Zulu leader from Western sources. More about the doctor and Proudfoot's relationship with Obama Here.

Basics

🌶️ Hot from Baz: Bridget Jonescrazy heroine with the worst track record in love, will commemorated by a statue in Leicester Square, London.

🌶️ And hot: Sky's latest document is an investigation into the strange – and still unfolding – story behind Salt path.

🔥 Another: British multi-hyphenate comedian Alice Lowe signed a contract for two films in association with British production company Western Edge Pictures.

🗣️ Keep saying: Claudia Winkleman set to foreground BBC talk show after she and Tess Daly dropped the bombshell they were climbed out of the monolith on a Saturday evening in the UK Dancing under strict arrival.

🌴 AFM: There was a lot of news from the pre-American film market. I'll break this week ahead of next month's event.

🏖️ Focus: Morocco will Country focus at next year's EFM Berlinale.

🃏 “Wild cards” on the table: Blink49 Studios and Piller/Segan formalizing their long-term partnershipwhich has already spawned a CBC and The CW series about minor crimes. Wild cards.

🌍 Globe: After a short break we are back to our Global Breakouts destination. showing a British film for the first timefeature of Tourette's syndrome Kirk Jones I swear.

International Insider was written by Jesse Whittock and edited by Max Goldbart.