MIPTV 2013: 50 TV years, new multi-platform challenges

Laurine Garaude, director of TV division at Reed Mideem, resumes the key issues of MIPTV: ‘We want to anticipate trends, to bring the technology titans closer and to make focus on creators from any side of the business. MipCube is the great new thing, joining online producers. At this MIPTV for the first time, there are booths of big tech players as Siemens, Accenture and Videology, and we provide with Sony a conference on 4K- Ultra HD technology’.

Fifty years. ‘In 1963 the market was very different, there weren’t so many players and TV was not international. Today the TV business is multi-dimensional, with many platforms, many types of business. But the key is always to be one step ahead. MIPTV enriches this way’, adds Garaude.

At MIPdoc, Putin’s Olympics, from Saxonia Entertainment, Russia was the winner of the official pitching. It is the story of the upcoming Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, told in a very innovative way.

Argentina, the Southern Latin American country, called the attention at the show sponsoring both the Opening Cocktail of MIPDoc & MIPFormats, and the Snack & Screen, where eight Argentinean documentaries were screened to 140 people, from Thailand, USA, China, Poland and Lebanon, among other countries. The National Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts of Argentina (INCAA) is driving the move, which includes giant spots both at the Carlton Hotel and close to the Palais of Festivals.

Patricia Daujotas, VP acquisitions at Fox International Channels: ‘We manage two types of documentaries: the traditional ones, with big structure and production, which continue running well, and the new fashioned ones, that provide edutainment. We want to have both, but we want to develop more the latter ones’.

At MIPFormats, Big Again, from Hatch Entertainment, Australia, has been the winner of the Warner Bros international pitch. It is a talent-music show that chooses music hits from the 70s and the 90s, the participants must remix them to new-current versions.

Simon Staffans, content developer at MediaCity, Finland: ‘The hot areas for formats today are Israel, the Netherlands, Turkey, Brazil, Russia and Scandinavia’. Patty Geneste, CEO at Absolutely Independent (Holland) and president of FRAPA: ‘MipFormats became a “format”, it is a good and established way to promote format business’.

Stephen Lambert, CEO All3Media USA: ‘If people don't like a show anymore they tell you on Twitter. Though this social media doesn't represent the full age range, British broadcasters are more interested in younger people anyway. In America there's more original programming than ever before, both scripted and non-scripted. I think that's great for producers, but iit makes it much harder to get noticed’.

About MIPTV itself, it is important to hear the perception of Claudia Ruhl, senior manager acquisitions, ProSieben Sat.1 Group, Germany: ‘MIPTV is very useful for me. Since I buy series, it is a great show to see the European independents all together, while at other shows I have to devote most of my time on the Hollywood studios. And now there are very good options, big budget productions, on the independent side’.

Nicolás Smirnoff and Fabricio Ferrara