2012 – 2013 Broadcast Season: 56% Of New Shows Sold To UK; Disney Has Tough Year, CBS Sells Entire Slate, BSkyB Heaviest Buyer
Seven months on from my half-time report on scripted acquisitions hitting the UK from the five US broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox and NBC) for the 2012 – 2013 season and there has been some movement. But not a whole hell of a lot. From an overview, sales were slightly depressed this past season with just over half (56%) of the new scripted series hitting the UK – that’s stacked up against a sell through rate of 70% for the scripted shows that comprised the 2011-2012 season. This despite having less new shows this past season compared to 2011-2012 (39 for the 2012-2013 season vs 43 for 2011-2012 season). There is no single reason for what one studio source called “lacklustre” sales, with sources pegging it down to a mix of 1) the rise of UK broadcasters (most notably BSkyB and UKTV) preferring to focus more of their budgets on original commissions; 2) what one acquisitions executive at a major broadcaster described as an overall “weak” slate of new series; and 3) a high volume of returning US series leading to less demand for new entries.
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