BBC Studios Boss Talks “Excellent” ‘Doctor Who’ Deal, M&A & International Growth
deadline.comDoctor Who’s latest regeneration represents “excellent commercial value,” according to BBC Studios boss Tom Fussell. Sitting down for a wide-ranging interview with Deadline in mid-January, the CEO described the attention-grabbing deals his team struck with Bad Wolf and Disney+ that have reshaped the Doctor’s future ahead of the series’ 60th birthday.
In short, they represent the future of a more aggressively commercial BBC Studios. In 2021, BBC Studios announced it would for the first time co-produce Doctor Who with Bad Wolf.
On the distribution side, BBC Studios since has signed a landmark global streaming agreement with Disney+, pulling back from existing territory licensing deals in the process.
The deal is one of the biggest struck in the commercial outfit’s history. Both partnerships highlight how the BBC Studios led by Fussell and BBC Director General Tim Davie is unashamedly and aggressively focused on generating more income for the UK’s leading public service broadcaster even for prized in-house IP like Doctor Who.
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