How Global TV Sales Houses Are Adapting To The Cost-Of-Living Crisis – London TV Screenings

deadline.com:

The cost-of-living crisis is wreaking havoc and the global TV industry is not immune. As hundreds of buyers and sellers descend upon the UK for the annual London TV Screenings, distributors are looking closely at how they can adapt their catalogs and work in tandem with clients in the face of the incoming recession.

However, the task is not an easy one. Numerous distributors tell Deadline they have had contingencies in place for a long time to deal with such a macro fiscal event – contingencies that came to the fore during Covid-19.

These are frequently being shaped by the world around them, not just by recession, they say. “The ongoing strategy we have and the way we approach the market is constantly evolving,” says Ruth Berry, ITV Studios’ Managing Director of Global Distribution, who was recently promoted to lead the outfit’s combined Distribution and Entertainment arms. “Thinking about these dynamics comprises a large part of our job.

There is always a bit of a lag in terms of where you think the world is at and where it’s actually at, and we have to really understand that.” Simon Cox, EVP Content Acquisitions of Big Brother and Survivor seller Banijay Rights, has spent the past two decades learning how to deal with the “ups and downs” of the global economy and applying them to the cutthroat world of TV sales. “We are a global business operating and selling globally so this is all about being agile and adapting to local needs,” says Cox. “Being aware of what’s coming is so important.