The London week in late February, that included a good MIPLondon from Sunday to Tuesday, and The London Screenings from Monday to Friday, has showed above all fresh energy and sure roads about linear + digital monetization to the content industry. Let’s intend a smart brief…
• The content industry has now 4 new-age axles: one, YouTube and the creators economy, that bring new rules, ideas, people to content industry. TV needs to be profitable in YouTube and social media contents are an opportunity to refresh TV screens. Two, Micro-dramas, which had the most crowded conference at MIPLondon, everybody wants to hear about. Many players need more than producing original content, how to adapt traditional programming to vertical. The Chinese apps are leading the global market, the challenge is to extend the life cycle of the users.
Three, AI, which is like the cloud, it doesn’t provide own products, it is everywhere to improve and change most of the traditional distribution and production pillars. And 4 but the most important for many, Branded Content, which is the most direct and ‘easiest’ way to surpass the current funding cross-roads. At MIPLondon was present Publicis, one of the ad agencies focused on contents that connect big brands with projects. This year in U.S., it got USD 1.5 million per episode in branding, for an Amazon Prime project.
• Due to the London TV Screenings presentations, three big concepts have been remarked: to provide just premium content, to have real success chances in the market; fresh creativity, based on the Digital First people and contents, plus new origins (more exotic, better) to change the current perspectives; and collaborations, with co-productions, co-developments, co-marketing, as a main key factor to move forward globally in contents. Nobody, from Hollywood Studios to Google, can alone at these times.
• Unscripted continue as the top segment for European buyers, but scripted is a good way to grow in the region, with already many medium players now looking for fictions to adapt globally. Genres? At the screenings, we saw many Survivor alike formats, always on top recently; dating shows, growing again; cooking shows keep their good moment; and physical competences more than quiz shows… prime time audience prefer not to think so much nowadays.
Also, big broadcasters of main European countries, like shiny floor show options. ‘Traitors’, the All3Media’s mystery reality format hit, continues having twisted versions. In fictions, the ’just premium content’ trend is visible, with Fox’s ‘The Faithfull: women of the Bible’, as a good example. In London we’ve seen mainly dramas and thrillers, far more than comedies. To launch spin-offs, sequels, prequels, reduces risks. Both in unscripted and scripted, all genres, to generate celebrity contents pays very well these days.
• Other London tips: podcasts are a segment not so usually mentioned, but it is taken in mind more and more as another option to refresh media. During MIPLondon also appeared the concept of ‘Hyper distribution’, which is the new way that public broadcasters, medium producers and players in general, have to surpass traditional limitations in distribution: social media, online communities… global niche consumers come progressively.
• The European broadcasters were again the main buyers of The London TV Screening 2026, but they also improved their share versus total buyers and versus the other continents, which till last year were more visible. This means that traditional TV heads want to evolve and continue leading entertainment business. At the surveys Prensario made with buyers, the broadcasters required mainly two issues: to continue receiving traditional products for their channels —procedurals, big entertainment shows, etc.— and to make them easier the digital transition: formats that have specific social media or product placement developments, thought branded content options. Beyond digital, monetization, fundings, are always the top issues.
Nicolas Smirnoff and Alberto Buitron
