At this year’s TIFFCOM market, Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS) Television presented an ambitious global strategy that underscores the company’s growing international footprint. The broadcaster highlighted new alliances with major players, fresh developments in co-productions and formats, and the continued international success of its production arm, The Seven.
Expanding Through Global Alliances
A cornerstone of TBS’s strategy is the creation of strong international partnerships to boost the global reach of its IPs. Among the key announcements was a collaboration with Banijay Entertainment, one of the world’s leading production groups with more than 130 companies across 21 countries and territories. Through this deal, Banijay will leverage its global network to distribute the SASUKE/Ninja Warrior format in new markets, excluding Asia, the Americas, and selected parts of Europe — bringing the popular franchise to an even broader audience.
Another major step comes through TBS’s partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery’s HBO Max, a global streaming platform with more than 120 million subscribers. Thanks to its link with TBS-affiliated platform U-NEXT, TBS content is now available in over 100 countries and territories, marking an important leap in international distribution.
TBS also revealed a strategic alliance with Vietnam’s national broadcaster VTV, starting with the revival of SASUKE Vietnam after a seven-year break. The cooperation extends beyond broadcast, encompassing co-development of new content, distribution, and talent exchange. Both companies aim to build what they describe as “Partnership 2.0,” shifting from traditional broadcasting to a model focused on content branding and global co-production.
The Seven: Driving Japan’s Global Content Strategy
Central to TBS’s global ambitions is The Seven, the company’s international production studio established to develop content for worldwide audiences, beyond Japan’s domestic schedules.
The studio has already achieved remarkable success. Its first feature film, The Status of the Fool—fully planned, produced, and distributed by The Seven— earned critical acclaim, with its three main actors, Takumi Kitamura, Yuta Hayashi, and Gou Ayano, collectively receiving the Best Actor Award at the 30th Busan International Film Festival (BIFF).
The Seven has also showcased top-tier VFX and production capabilities through its Netflix-distributed hits Alice in Borderland and Yu Yu Hakusho, both achieving record-breaking viewership. Yu Yu Hakusho entered Netflix’s Top 10 in 92 countries, while Alice in Borderland Season 3 recently ranked No. 1 globally in the platform’s non-English series category. The studio emphasizes a “Made with Japan” approach, working with world-class creative partners, and is now expanding this vision to “Made with Asia” and “Made with the World.”
Among its upcoming projects, The Seven is developing a live-action adaptation of a legendary cult comic starring Takayuki Yamada, and Kasso, a large-scale global competition show built around extreme skateboard courses. Kasso has already gained strong momentum on social media —particularly in the U.S. and Brazil— and is set to evolve into a full media franchise including live events and branded merchandise.
Co-Development and Format Creation
TBS continues to strengthen its creative ties across Asia and beyond. Together with South Korea’s CJ ENM, the broadcaster is co-developing new entertainment formats, including two survival game shows: Infinite Loop, which was nominated for a major international format award, and a second project titled Synchro, currently in production. The partnership has also branched into scripted drama, with First Love Docs reaching multiple platforms such as HBO Max and Korea’s TVING.
In North America and the UK, TBS collaborated with Full Circle Entertainment to develop Floor Art Geeshan, a new sports entertainment format that already has a pilot episode produced and broadcast.
