Viewpoints: Acquisition strategies
Nicolas Deschamps
Head of Acquisitions Department
Arte France
France
What are your acquisition strategies?
It's a "Fetchbook" strategy without any internet tool for it. I am dreaming about a Facebook like website that would be efficient enough to share content between professionals. Without this magical tool, I am sewing a web of contacts and contents as wide as possible, and MIP is a good place for it. It allows the mixing of all kind of genres, and sometimes, this kind of common place creates a new kind of convergence. What products are you looking for?
This year, we provided several daytime slots with all kind of genres (documentaries, fictions (series), kids programs, music.) As an example, "Far away places" is a daily documentary strand as a vehicle for programming that will perk up our image. We use this slot to really see the world through the eyes of others; it's an opportunity to give viewers a wide vision of the world they live in. We are also on the lookout for solid unscripted formats that could be adapted for the channel's purposes. This could be anything from a talk or magazine show to a factual-entertainment program. It's a work in progress; there's no concrete slot for this yet, but we wish to modernize the way we talk about culture. Last but not least, the channel hopes to create long-term viewer fidelity by engaging young viewers through our weekly kids block targeting eight to 12-year-olds across animation, docs or magazines, based around science, nature and discovery.
Can you name the most successful titles that you acquired this year?
Overall, our editorial line is to look for shows open to others' cultures, points of view and civilizations. In the 18h00 timeslot, we have just broadcast the BBC's The Wonderful World of Kahn to good audience figures.
Between 1908 and 1930, a millionaire French banker, Albert Kahn, decided to send photographers around the globe to document life on the planet. Thanks to his vast personal fortune, Kahn's photographers were able to travel to more than 50 countries, capturing the environment and cultures of the known world.
What products will be in demand during MIPCOM 2009?
The current world financial crisis will put TV on the frontline and public expectations will be eager for more entertainment. I would say I will follow this tendency with delightful programs adding an important ingredient to it: "The other factor". History tells us that during a crisis, nationalism is not far away. I will stay tuned to the richness of this world. |
