week 27 the RTL Group intranet Newsletter 3 July 2008 With the broadest appeal Ute Biernat on being one of Germany’s leading producers United Kingdom FremantleMedia’s digital strategy explained Germany Spendenmarathon funds children daycare centre Euro 2008 on private radio France Nicolas de Tavernost on the French media reform With the broadest appeal Ute Biernat on being one of Germany’s leading producers COVER: Ute Biernat Managing Director of Grundy Light Entertainment United Kingdom FremantleMedia’s digital strategy explained Germany Spendenmarathon funds children daycare centre Euro 2008 on private radio France Nicolas de Tavernost on the French media reform 2 week 27 the RTL Group intranet “Motivated employees, creative potential, pro- fessional methods and teamwork” The 2007/2008 annual review (Saisoncheck) published by Kress, a service provider to the media and communication sector, lists the Top 100 regular programmes broadcast during the TV season. Grundy Light Entertainment reaches larger audiences than any other producer in Germany, attracting an average of 3.05 million viewers aged 14 to 49. Thomas Godoj Germany - 26 June 2008 According to Kress, no other production com- Top 100, crowning us the most successful TV pany managed to exceed the 3-million mark. producers. This year we came out top again, The UFA subsidiary owes its success primarily with our programmes drawing an average of to season five of the vastly popular casting over 3 million viewers and thus generating lar- show Deutschland sucht den Superstar (Idols), ger audiences than our rivals. As we all know, whose auditions and live shows were included all good things come in threes, so we’ll defini- in the tally along with the result shows. tely be aiming to win pole position in the 2008/09 TV season as well! This year’s Kress rankings are based on the period between September 2007 and May What do you feel to be the main reason 2008. The Saisoncheck only lists TV formats behind this success? that had at least six episodes aired during the The four key criteria for success are: highly period under review. motivated employees; unbridled creative potential; professional production methods; In light of the production company’s leadership and perfectly smooth teamwork, both between status, Backstage asked Ute Biernat, Managing staff, and between Grundy LE and our custo- Director of Grundy Light Entertainment (Grundy mers, the broadcasters themselves. LE), about the formula for the success of Deutschland sucht den Superstar, the new sea- Deutschland sucht den Superstar (DSDS), son of Das Supertalent and the next steps in was one of our most succesful formats last Grundy LE’s strategic development. season. What do you think makes DSDS so successful and popular? The annual Saisoncheck published by Kress There are various components underpinning crowned Grundy Light Entertainment the the success of DSDS, which is currently the production company attracting the biggest biggest live show on German TV. Firstly, vie- audiences. What was your reaction to that wers love the interesting contestants and follo- result? wing the rivalry between them. Secondly, the Naturally we were very happy about the result show makes viewers feel that a totally normal of Kress’s rankings of production companies. individual ‘like you or me’ can become a super- Last year Kress listed the Top 100 programmes star. Genuine feelings expressed by real people regularly aired during the 2006/2007 TV sea- are what keep viewers hooked. son. Four of our productions made it into that 3 week 27 the RTL Group intranet When will the new season of Das In addition, we have regional talent scouts wor- Supertalent (Got Talent) begin, and will any- king for us year-round, looking for interesting thing have changed since last year? contestants. You can look forward to a new season of Das Supertalent starting this autumn, and the show What kinds of new formats can we expect has a very wide range of amusing, cranky and from Grundy Light Entertainment in the futu- extremely talented performers lined up for you. re? Unlike last year, this time there will be eight epi- We’re developing formats of various types. In sodes of the show instead of just three. comedy the trend is towards sketches and fake docusoaps. Otherwise, we’re developing How do you actually go about finding prime time shows designed to entertain the contestants for such a casting show? whole family. I’m also expecting a renaissance We have a very sophisticated system for fin- of the game show format. ding candidates, which we have developed over the past 10 years and can now apply How do the members of FremantleMedia’s anywhere in Europe. After all, the contestants international network cooperate with each are major contributors to virtually any show’s other? Put differently, how do you benefit success, especially where casting shows are from being part of that international net- concerned. Which is precisely why Grundy LE work? has its own internal casting department, whose Working together within FremantleMedia’s staff are professionals specially trained in that international network is highly beneficial for all domain. concerned. We’re regularly in touch with our colleagues worldwide and discuss the latest The auditions procedure is very individual for ideas and trends. Because an international each show. Naturally, the casting processes for exchange of views is absolutely essential for DSDS differ greatly from those for something the development of formats that can be sold all like Das Quiz mit Jörg Pilawa. over the world. Usually we start with a casting call on TV, on FremantleMedia’s Million Dollar Password fran- the Internet or in ads. The contestants can then chise has been airing very successfully during apply by mail, online or – this is entirely new – prime time on CBS since 1 June. With a 10.5 by SMS. Following a first round of invitations, per cent market share in the 2+ demographic, we see whether the contestants are a good the show was number one in its timeslot. We match for the show, whether they are talented, are in touch with our colleagues at are likable, and what stories they have to tell. FremantleMedia and are in the process of sel- For the quiz, for instance, they take a multiple- ling the format on the German market. choice test on general educa- tion, so that we don’t just get "super-brains" on the show. Every programme lives by the diversity and the recognisability of its contestants. Das Supertalent 4 week 27 the RTL Group intranet Grundy LE’s most successful formats Deutschland sucht den Superstar Broadcast by RTL Television (Germany) The grand final of the fifth season of the popu- lar talent show aired by RTL Television was watched by as many as 6.55 million viewers. On average, 5.54 million viewers over 3 years of age (a market share of 20 per cent) and a highly impressive 30.9 per cent of 14- to 49- Das Quiz mit Jörg Pilawa year-olds (3.28 million) tuned in to watch the Broadcast by ARD (Germany) two finalists battle it out for the title. Preparations are currently under way for the In Das Quiz mit Jörg Pilawa pairs of contes- hit format’s sixth season, which is due to air on tants team up to play for big money prizes of RTL Television early in 2009. The contract with up to EUR 300,000. Anyone who’s in love, juror Dieter Bohlen has already been extended engaged, married or related in some other way until 2012. can apply to take part in the show. Examples of teams include fathers and sons, grandmo- thers and granddaughters or even bosses and their secretaries. The likeable quizmaster puts these pairs through their paces four times a week on ARD, from Tuesdays to Fridays, star- ting at 19:20. Das Supertalent Broadcast by RTL Television (Germany) Das Supertalent is the casting show where absolutely anything is possible. Regardless of how cranky or crazy a talent may be, this is the show that gives everyone (or even performing animals) a chance to shine, whether they are solo performers or part of an act. Das Supertalent sets no limits. The audience of the 5 gegen 5 first season’s final of Das Supertalent on 3 Broadcast by SF (Switzerland) November 2007 peaked at 6 million. Casting is currently under way for the popular talent As the name suggests, 5 gegen 5 (5 against 5) show’s second season, which RTL Television pits two teams of five against each other. will air in the autumn. Teams may comprise members of a family, club or association, work colleagues, class- mates or neighbours. In fact, any kind of team can apply to appear on the show, the sole condition being that each must comprise five members. The teams have to guess the most frequent answers emerging in a survey conducted Noch Besserwissen among 100 Swiss nationals on topics taken Broadcast by ProSieben (Germany) from everyday life. The team amassing the highest points score goes through to the final Grundy LE and Oliver Welke go off in search of round to play for 3,000 Swiss francs. Each odd facts and trivia. Noch Besserwissen – die team is allowed to defend its title four times, große Show des unnützen Wissens is a home- and if it reaches a fifth final the stakes are rai- grown comedy quiz. sed to 30,000 Swiss francs. 5 week 27 the RTL Group intranet “A fantastic time for content creators and distributors” At a conference in London, Christian Schneider- Sickert, Director of Operations and Strategy for FremantleMedia, explained the production group’s strategy as regards content for new digital platforms.