At the Series Mania Forum, key executives from Sky shared insights into the broadcaster’s content strategy and market positioning in the face of ongoing changes in the global television industry. Cécile Frot-Coutaz, CEO of Sky Studios and chief content officer at Sky, addressed the current challenges and opportunities in a landscape she described as undergoing structural shifts.
‘There is less product than there was two years ago’, she acknowledged, ‘but there still probably is more than there would have been 10 or 15 years ago’. Frot-Coutaz suggested that, despite a contraction in content volume compared to recent years, overall investment in production remains relatively strong. ‘We’re in a phase of transition, so things will settle at some point, with probably a slightly reorganized industry structure and business models’, she said.
Sky’s updated distribution deal with HBO, coinciding with the arrival of HBO Max in the U.K., was a central topic of discussion. ‘What’s really good about the deal that we struck is that if you’re a Sky subscriber, at no additional cost, you will have access to the Max app within your Sky platform’, Frot-Coutaz explained. The agreement allows Sky to retain life-of-series rights for key titles such as The Last of Us and The White Lotus.
Meghan Lyvers, executive director of original scripted for the U.K. and Ireland, added that the partnership does not diminish Sky’s ambitions for its own slate. ‘The news is: keep doing what you’re doing and keep your eye on the ambition and the quality’, she said, pointing to the importance of long-term planning for high-profile projects such as The Day of the Jackal.
In Italy, the status of negotiations with HBO remains unresolved. ‘Separate platform, separate negotiation’, commented Nils Hartmann, executive vice president of Sky Studios Italia. ‘For us as Sky Italy, it’s still about being able to keep on raising the bar’.
Frot-Coutaz emphasized the importance of investing in local content, alongside international programming. ‘As great as the U.S. shows are, audiences also like to see themselves in series’, she said. ‘Out of the top ten shows that we had [in the U.K. in 2024], eight were Sky originals and two were HBO shows’.
The conversation also addressed the perceived slowdown in the high-end scripted market in the U.K., as industry stakeholders face rising production costs and unchanged expectations for talent deals. ‘Every producer right now is feeling the pain’, Lyvers noted, while highlighting the value of financial flexibility. She pointed to Sweet Pea as an example of a more economically structured production made possible through tax incentives.
The discussion concluded with a focus on collaborative problem-solving and adaptable production models. ‘It’s causing all of us to think in a more integrated, collaborative way’, Lyvers said. ‘I reject that [a show] can’t be made. Let’s figure out what we can do together in a different way’.
