Chinese TV Formats Eye Global Expansion, Industry Leaders Reveal at Mip London

variety.com:

Naman Ramachandran International TV format experts gathered at Mip London to discuss the growing exchange of content between China and global markets, highlighting both opportunities and challenges in cross-cultural adaptation.

Qin Xiaoming of Jiangsu Broadcasting Corporation (JSBC) shared how the Chinese broadcaster has evolved from acquiring international formats to developing original content for export. “JSBC has been very persistent in the format business for over a decade,” said Qin. “We both buy and sell.

We brought quite a lot of international formats to China, like ‘Got Talent’ from Fremantle and ‘Still Standing,’ which was very successful in China.” Qin added that while a few formats had been optioned to the U.S., U.K.

and Europe, they are still waiting for a “milestone format, one format that might work globally.” Avi Armoza of Armoza Formats emphasized the importance of co-development when working with Chinese partners. “The most effective way of bringing shows to China is to find partners that, even if you have an existing format, you need to work in co-developing, adapting it to the Chinese market,” Armoza explained.