How the Youtube channel “The Pet Collective”

5 July 2012
week
27
Adorable and enriching
How the Youtube channel “The Pet Collective” enhances
FremantleMedia’s online portfolio
Germany
Germany
Anke Schäferkordt on
Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland’s
current development
Vox presents
2012 edition of
The X Factor
United Kingdom
Belgium
Tony Cohen
bids farewell
RTL-TVI presents jury
for Belgium’s Got Talent
week 27
Cover:
Montage with the logo of “The Pet Collective”
2
week 27
“An adorable online
destination”
Richard Vargas
In June 2012, FremantleMedia launched
the new channel “The Pet Collective” which
is part of Youtube’s initiative to create new
channels of programming. “The Pet Collective”
brings together three core divisions of
FremantleMedia’s business – FremantleMedia
North America, FremantleMedia Enterprises
and FremantleMedia Cross Platforms (FMX) –
to leverage their combined expertise, assets
and business strategies to engage with
consumers,
advertisers
and
distribution
partners. “FremantleMedia is a global creative
powerhouse that develops brands that extend
well beyond TV,” said Cécile Frot-Coutaz, CEO
FremantleMedia. “We’re really excited to bring
our high-quality storytelling and production
expertise to a subject matter like pets that is
close to everyone’s hearts, and we’re proud to
be delivering informative and innovative content
that offers a compelling new form of engagement
with international audiences.”
The new channel celebrates pets and pet
lovers through entertainment, information and
involvement. At launch, “The Pet Collective”
offers seven original new, short-form series
with new content added daily, for more than 20
hours of programming in its first three months.
“Launching ‘The Pet Collective’ is part of
our strategy to produce original, quality
programming for evolving media platforms,”
explains Richard Vargas, Senior Vice
President Development & Production FMX at
FremantleMedia. “This builds on the very strong
FremantleMedia has launched its first-ever
Youtube-funded channel, “The Pet Collective”,
which focuses on the theme of pets. Backstage
talked to Richard Vargas about the project.
United Kingdom - 5 July 2012
relationship we have with Youtube already, as
one of their biggest production partners in the
world.”
FremantleMedia already operates around 50
channels on the platform for its various shows
around the world. FremantleMedia content on
Youtube was viewed 2 billion times in 2011 alone,
and it’s growing: “Our daily views right now are
double what they were a year ago,” says Vargas.
“We have also created original content for the
platform before now. The main difference here is
that ‘The Pet Collective’ channel is fully-funded
by Youtube and, in this instance, they’re also
selling sponsorship deals to advertisers.”
Ben McOwen Wilson, Head of Youtube
Entertainment
Northern
Europe,
says
“FremantleMedia has built one of the premiere
global entertainment businesses in the world
through hits like American Idol, The X Factor,
and America’s Got Talent. It’s new ‘Pet
Collective’ Channel
will
deliver
great,
professional content to the pet lovers in our
global audience of 800 million people.”
All video content on “The Pet Collective” can
be viewed by anyone across the world, but
the nature of the deal with Youtube is that the
content is targeted at US audiences. Richard
Vargas: “Pets are a $50 billion a year industry
in the US, yet there was no real entertainment
destination, online or offline, that celebrated the
relationship between humans and their pets.
3
week 27
The Pet Collective
We wanted to use our expertise in production,
digital and distribution to create an adorable
online destination which celebrates the enriching
effect that pets have on our lives every day.”
The initial lineup of original programming on
“The Pet Collective” includes: The Litter which
is narrated by animal lover and activist Khloé
Kardashian Odom. The Litter is an adorably
cute and informative series that follows a
litter of six newborn kittens and their mother
during an eight-week period. In Growing Up
Wild, Bindi and Robert Irwin continue the
legacy of their father, adventurer Steve Irwin, by
educating and informing audiences about the
animals who share their day-to-day lives. Each
episode introduces one of their treasured pets
– and broadens our knowledge of the animal
kingdom.
The
Unadoptables
is
designed
to
inspire a movement toward responsible pet
purchasing and ownership. It focuses on
different kinds of “unadoptable” pets – from black
cats and senior animals to pets with special
needs that have trouble finding a home. In Kitten
on a Keyboard feline host Anime Lillipuss greets
viewers from her office in the Pet Collective
building, leading them through the best,
funniest, silliest, most inspiring and amazing
content to be found on “The Pet Collective” in
the news and across the web. For Pet Sense,
animal communicator Michelle Childerley
reaches out from her home in Cambridge,
Visit
om/
Youtube.lc
lective
ThePetCo
England, to help get
Americans’ pet relationships on track. Master
and Pet is an original
scripted comedy series
about a young woman and
the pet cat that is her best friend,
co-conspirator and therapist. At the
moment all this content and “The Pet
Collective” itself are “exclusive to Youtube,”
says Richard Vargas.
FremantleMedia’s content on Youtube has
garnered more than 4.2 billion views to date
since the start of its collaboration with Youtube.
Driving those views are viral videos from global
entertainment shows including the The X Factor
from both the UK and Australia; Korea’s Got
Talent’s Sung Bong Choi audition; American
Idol’s Chris Medina audition; and Family Feud
with host Steve Harvey.
Other popular videos include the incredibly
successful audition of Susan Boyle for Britain’s
Got Talent, which has achieved more than
300 million views in aggregate, and Jackie
Evancho’s audition for America’s Got
Talent, which propelled the 10-year-old singing
sensation to stardom after auditioning for
the show through a season-long partnership
with Youtube. In doing so, FremantleMedia
is one of the few TV producers to have
content in Youtube’s Top 100 most viewed
videos of all time.
4
week 27
Tony Cohen bids farewell
On his last day in office, Tony Cohen said goodbye to FremantleMedia after leading the
company for more than ten years and wrote a letter to all FremantleMedia employees.
On 1 July, Cecile Frot-Coutaz took over as CEO of FremantleMedia.
United Kingdom - 2 July 2012
Tony Cohen
Guillaume de Posch, Co-CEO of RTL Group,
said: “I would like to thank Tony Cohen for his
outstanding achievements. He has transformed
FremantleMedia from a collection of individual
entities into a global content powerhouse – a
truly global brand, and a very strong pillar of the
RTL Group. Since he became CEO of our
production arm in 2001, the company has
branched out into new growth areas, such
as online and mobile gaming, branded
entertainment,
kids’ entertainment and
more recently Youtube channels . Under his
leadership, the company has grown in revenue
by 90 per cent, while its operating profit more
than doubled. Anke Schäferkordt and I had the
opportunity to celebrate Tony at our last OMC a
few days ago. FremantleMedia shall celebrate
him on 11 July. I wish him all the best for the
future.”
Tony Cohen, born in 1953, began his career
as a journalist working for London regional
newspapers and the Sunday Times. He joined
London Weekend Television in 1979 where he
held senior production posts. In 1995 he was
appointed
Managing
Director
of
the
Broadcasting Division of Pearson Television.
He later became Co-Chairman of the North
American division of Pearson Television, and
President of its production operation in Los
Angeles. In 2000 he returned to the UK to run
worldwide production and in 2001 became
CEO of FremantleMedia. End of June 2012,
Tony Cohen stepped down to focus on his
non-executive work.
Tony Cohen said farewell to the employees with
a personal letter he sent out on his last day in
office to all employees at FremantleMedia. Read
the full letter at the next page.
5
week 27
Tony Cohen’s letter to all FremantleMedia employees
Dear Colleagues,
This is my last day at FremantleMedia after 17 years, 11 of them as CEO.
I am writing to say goodbye to all of you and to thank you for your great work and support during
that time.
Over the years I’ve met many of you, particularly on my world tours. I’ve always been so delighted
and hugely energised by your wonderful enthusiasm for doing great work and for our mission to
deliver inspiring entertainment to our audiences.
It is astonishing to see how much we have changed the company since 2001.
We invented a whole new genre – reality talent shows, and they’ve been such brilliant prime time
hits for us across the globe. We have built our range of genres from first class drama serials,
series and movies, to outstanding factual entertainment, factual, games and comedy.
We have a tremendous Enterprises business, which has realised the full value of our
programming. Their unique organisation and business model has set the standard for the industry.
We are a leader on the digital frontier, from second screens, to apps, to YouTube channels and
gaming.
Lastly, our way of working at FremantleMedia, the way we collaborate with each other, has kept
the company united and successful.
Our achievements make me feel even more certain that we have only just begun to find out what
new opportunities there will be for our company, our staff and our partners.
As you know, Cecile Frot-Coutaz will take over from me on Monday. I have worked with Cecile
for the last 17 years and I have no doubt she will do a fantastic job leading the company through
the challenges ahead.
For the next year or so I will be focusing on the not-for-profit sector, particularly on my work for the
children’s and young person’s UK charity, Barnardo’s.
I’m sorry to say goodbye. I will miss my colleagues all around the world, and the company, very
much indeed.
I wish you and Cecile every success in the years ahead – and be sure that I’ll be cheering you
on, whatever you do next!
Yours,
Tony Cohen
6
week 27
“Germany’s most
popular provider of
video content”
Anke Schäferkordt
In 2011, RTL Television attracted an average
audience share of 18.4 per cent among viewers
aged 14 to 49. In the year to date, the channel
hasn’t managed to maintain this level: “What we
ourselves predicted has happened: precisely
because we had two record years with far
above-average ratings and grew counter to the
market trend despite being a big channel already,
we are not surprised that things are returning to
normal now,” said Anke Schäferkordt. “Up until
the Euro football championships on ARD and
ZDF, we attracted a solid 17 per cent of the
young audience, our nearest competitor didn’t
even score 12 per cent.“ The channel’s goal, she
added, is to maintain its market leadership with
a “decent lead”, which given the transformation
to digital and the associated fragmentation of the
markets, however, will not happen at the record
levels seen in the past two years.
In this keenly competitive environment, she said,
the new channel RTL Nitro – a “big investment“
for Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland – had
gotten off to a better start than expected, already
scoring 0.5 per cent of the young audience
market in May – even though the channel wasn’t
even digitally receivable all over the whole
country yet. “The channel has already had
a daily audience share of one per cent –
something other new channels needed two
years to accomplish,” said Schäferkordt.
In the advertising market, Schäferkordt she
says there has been only little shifting from
TV to online: “The research on advertising
effectiveness also indicates that television is
indispensable for quickly building reach. So
we’re on the alert, but by no means agitated
concerning the future of advertising sales –
In an interview with the Welt am Sonntag Sunday
paper, Anke Schäferkordt, Co-CEO of RTL Group
and CEO of Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland,
spoke about RTL Television’s market position and
digitisation-related changes in the TV business,
and called for changes in regulatory policies.
Germany - 2 July 2012
especially since we intend to grow beyond
classic TV advertising as well.“ Schäferkordt underlined that linear TV use is not jeopardised by
digital offerings and remains high.
Adds Schäferkordt: “In the past we did television
‘only’ – today we work every day at being
Germany’s most popular provider of video
content, regardless of the platform. We are
adapting our content so that in the long term
it doesn’t matter where and how and on what
device we reach our audience. What’s important
is that this usage is measured in its entirety in
future.” However, to achieve this goal, she said,
it is important that all market participants play by
the same rules. “It is not acceptable that tough
advertising restrictions apply for us in linear TV,
while online providers who place similar content
on the same screen thanks to Smart TVs can
advertise without restrictions.”
Equally worrisome, she said, is the politicians’
hesitancy regarding copyright legislation.
If creative output isn’t protected in a digital
world, she said, Germany has a huge problem.
In Schäferkordt’s words: “Germany is not a
country of natural resources or low wages, but
one that has always lived by creative ideas. The
emotionality and populism of the current debate
don’t do justice to the complexity and importance
of the issue.”
Asked about her additional workload as Co-CEO
of RTL Group and member of the Bertelsmann
Executive Board, Schäferkordt said: “The good
thing is that when you enjoy your work, you’re
less likely to experience negative stress, so I’m
quite optimistic.“
7
week 27
X Factor enters its third season
Vox presented the 2012 edition of X Factor at a press conference in Dusseldorf:
a new jury, bands competing for the first time, tougher rules and intensive teamwork
between the contestants and judges.
Germany - 6 June 2012
The jury: HP Baxxter, Sandra Nasic, Moses Pelham and Sarah Connor (from left to right)
Four entirely different characters, each with
their own area of musical expertise, for a perfect
blend of musical breadth and professionalism.
This season, for the first time the jury will consist
of four judges: Sarah Connor, HP Baxxter,
Moses Pelham and Sandra Nasic.
As in previous seasons, Jochen Schropp
will present the show with wit and sensitivity:
“Never before have there been such distinctive characters on the jury. Viewers can really
look forward to the special chemistry between
the four. And our candidates now need three
‘yeses’ to move to the next round.” Season three
of X Factor will for the first time give bands a
chance at making their musical breakthrough,
alongside solo performers, duos and vocal
groups.
The winner of the third X Factor season will get
to sign an exclusive recording contract with Sony
Music, which is a huge chance for them to gain
a foothold in the music business and work on
a long-term career with professional support.
The highlight this year is that the third-season
judges will assist their acts in producing the
winning single – a unique opportunity indeed. So
the judges will work even more intensively with
their protégés during the season, as the winning
single released at the end of it will be their joint
project.
X Factor will get extensive online coverage
on Vox.de as well as the channel’s mobile
portal and the show’s own I-Phone app. Highlight
videos, votes, live chats with the candidates, and
a social media feature that allows users to chat
within the app and online are just some of the
‘second screen’ extras.
X Factor will kick off at 20:15 on 25 August on
RTL Television. From 26 August, Vox will air the
popular music show every Sunday at 20:15.
The show is produced by Grundy Light
Entertainment.
8
week 27
Here come the judges
Belgium’s Got Talent will be the major television
event this autumn on RTL-TVI. The channel
revealed the names of the three judges.
Belgium - 3 July 2012
In early May, RTL-TVI announced the upcoming
broadcast of a 100 per cent Belgian version
of Got Talent. The jury of the talent show
produced by FremantleMedia has been
announced: Paul Ambach, Maureen Dor and
Carlos Vaquera will join the channel’s new
programme.
Paul Ambach has produced numerous legends
in Belgium, including James Brown, Genesis,
U2, Bon Jovi, Britney Spears and Michael
Jackson. “Being a judge on Belgium’s Got Talent
is a continuation of my career. I’m delighted to
discover all these talented Belgians,” he said in
a channel press release. A singer as well, better known as Boogie Boy, soul and R&B are his
trademark.
Belgium’s Got Talent will be presented by Jean-Michel Zecca
and Julie Taton
Maureen Dor has essentially made her career in
Paris, on Canal Plus and particularly France 2,
where she was a columnist in Laurent Ruquier’s
troop on On a tout essayé. A host, comedian,
singer and publisher of children’s books,
Maureen functions on emotion: “Rather than
focussing on the contestants’ technique or level,
I will just let myself be guided by what touches
me,” says the young woman about her role as a
judge.
with them,” says the artist. Carlos Vaquera made
his television debut on RTL-TVI and for a long
time hosted a similar entertainment programme
on the public channel called Pour la gloire.
Finally, Carlos Vaquera, a comedian, performer
author, presenter and magician of international
repute, has the experience and talent that have
earned him requests from around the world.
“In show business, one needs to be extremely
demanding in order to present the best shows.
I am that way with myself, so I will be that way
Presented by Julie Taton and Jean-Michel
Zecca, Belgium’s Got Talent will air in prime
time as 11 broadcasts. During the registration
period, some 1,800 contestants responded to the
casting call, of which 165 were pre-selected for
the auditions that will take place in Brussels from
13 to 17 July.
The judges: Carlos Vaquera, Maureen Dor and Paul Ambach
(from left to right)
9
week 27
Airtime agent changeover
Several radio stations will switch from ARD Sales & Services (AS&S) to the radio
airtime sales agent RMS as of 1 January 2013, including 104.6 RTL, 105.5 Spreeradio,
RTL Radio, 89.0 RTL, Radio Brocken, Hitradio RTL and Sachsen Funkpaket.
Germany - 3 July 2012
Six stations of RTL Radio Deutschland’s portfolio changed their airtime sales house
RMS is gaining ten new radio stations at a
stroke, among them the nationwide station
RTL Radio, the Berlin stations 104.6 RTL and
105.5 Spreeradio, 89.0 RTL and Radio Brocken
in Saxony-Anhalt, as well as Hitradio RTL and
the Sachsen Funkpaket. Collectively, the new
clients mean an additional 1.4 million listeners
for RMS, making it the clear market leader in
the national radio ad sales market. RMS will
significantly expand its lead over its direct
competitor AS&S Germany, to more than
2.1 million listeners among 14- to 49-year-olds,
and over 2 million among 20- to 59-year-olds.
For Gert Zimmer, CEO of RTL Radio Deutschland,
the RTL radio stations’ switch from AS&S
to RMS is a logical next step given recent
developments: “Looking to the future, RMS
offers ideal structures for the nationwide
marketing of our radio holdings. It has an
excellent setup, is effective and has repeatedly
proven its innovative powers lately. Add to that
the fact that by taking this step, we avoid media
policy conflicts once the reduction of ARD radio
advertising is put into practice based on the
NDR model. 60 minutes per workday in one
radio programme per ARD institution – that
gives commercial radio stations a fair chance
long-term in the competition for ad spend, and
ensures that the radio genre remains a very
attractive advertising medium overall.”
Florian Ruckert, Chairman of the RMS
Management Board, says: “This decision has
confirmed us in our chosen course in marketing:
with its innovative offerings, RMS offers our
clients the strongest prospects. We plan to
use our improved market position even more
effectively for strategic changes to the market
from now on.”
The client gains bring movement to the RMS
shareholder structure as well: RTL Radiocenter
Berlin GmbH with its two stations 104.6 RTL and
105’5 Spreeradio, Funkhaus Halle KG with the
stations 89.0 RTL and Radio Brocken, and BCS
Broadcast Sachsen as the umbrella organisation
for Hitradio RTL and the Saxony radio package
will become new RMS shareholders from 2013.
10
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The German TV market in June
In June, Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland’s channels attracted a combined audience
share of 29.3 per cent among viewers aged 14 to 49 – not counting RTL Nitro, the
new channel launched in April. This put them 5 percentage points ahead of the
ProSiebenSat1 channels (24.3 per cent).
Germany - 2 July 2012
Best monthly performance in four years
In June 2012, M6 continued to increase its ratings, registering a total audience
share of 12.3 per cent, with several record performances due to the Euro 2012. M6
registered the second highest audience ever with the Sweden/France match and
12.2 million viewers.
France - 3 July 2012
Dutch Media Company of the Year
RTL Nederland won the ‘Media Company of the Year’ award at the Broadcast Business
Event held on 27 June 2012 at Hilversum’s Mediapark.
The Netherlands - 29 June 2012
On the route of the ‘Tour’
To cover the 2012 Tour de France, RTL Radio is once again hitting the roads of France
from 30 June to 22 July. So that listeners can follow the ‘Grande Boucle’, as the race
is known in France, cycling correspondent Laurent Jalabert is back on France’s
leading radio station.
France - 29 June 2012
The seeds of love are sown
Karine Le Marchand reprises her role as matchmaker and travels across the French
countryside, helping farmers in search of love to find their soul mate. Season seven
of L’Amour est dans le pré (Farmer wants a wife).
France - 2 July 2012
12
week 27
“Never be unreachable”
M6 mobile by Orange launches a new NCIS-themed ad campaign designed to promote
its M6 mobile Internet 1h package.
France - 4 July 2012
€20,000 for children in need
At the Germany premiere of Ice Age 4 – Voll Verschoben, Wolfram Kons accepted
a cheque for €20,000 from Twentieth Century Fox for the ‘RTL - Wir helfen Kindern’
foundation.
Germany - 4 July 2012
It’s summer on Bel RTL
Bel RTL launched its summer programme schedule. Listeners at French-speaking
Belgium’s number one radio station will discover two new culinary programmes where
humour and having a good time are on the menu.
Belgium - 4 July 2012
Antena 3 initiative ‘Ponle Freno’ launches summer campaign
The Antena 3 initiative “Ponle Freno” has launched a safety campaign for the summer,
targeting motorcyclists. The campaign is supported by spots in the TV and radio
programmes of Grupo Antena 3 and online.
Spain - 5 July 2012
13
week 27
People
Holger Andersen to leave
RTL II
Germany - 5 June 2012
Holger Andersen
After three years as RTL II’s Programme Director,
Holger Andersen will be leaving the channel and
moving to Cologne for personal reasons at the
end of the year.
Holger Andersen on his decision: “After
three eventful and successful years I will be
moving back to Cologne for personal reasons.
I would like to especially thank Jochen Starke
for the trust and confidence placed in me,
and our joint and passionate commitment to
developing the programme. A special thank-you
to my colleagues at RTL II for the fantastic
reception, good teamwork and exciting time
together, during which we made quite a lot
happen.”
Before becoming Programme Director at
RTL II, the business studies graduate worked for
RTL Television, among other things overseeing
strategic programme development from 1999
to 2005 as head of department. As head of the
Comedy department, from 2006 he handled
the ongoing management and development
of non-fiction programmes as well as the
successful establishment of RTL Television’s
Comedy line-up.
In his three years as Programme Director,
Andersen introduced a lot of innovation to the
programme line-up and structure. He leaves
behind a programme department that is in
excellent shape for the future.
“I thank Holger Andersen for his dedication
and his courage to innovate and wish him all
the best for the future,” says RTL II Managing
Director Jochen Starke. “I accept and respect his
decision – even though I very much regret it on a
personal and professional level. During his time
at RTL II, Holger set programming highlights that
will endure even after he leaves.“
14
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