NENT Studios UK seeks new ownership

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NENT Studios UK seeks new ownership
Details
Joseph O'Halloran
| 23 November 2020
London-based content development, production and distribution business NENT Studios UK, the British arm of Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT Group), has announced that it is looking for a new owner.
NENT DocMartin 23Nov2020

NENT Studios UK was created by NENT Group in October 2019 as part of its NENT Studios division, alongside studio bases in the Nordics, Central and Eastern Europe, and the US. From the outset, NENT Studios UK was wholly comprised of DRG, which was re-branded to NENT Studios UK in April 2020. Following the sale, NENT Group will retain the NENT Studios UK name.

The move to find a buyer for the company comes as NENT Group is divesting NENT Studios UK, along with a number of other production businesses, to focus on a growth strategy for its Viaplay streaming service. This includes launching in Poland and the US in 2021 as well as significantly growing subscriber numbers in the Nordic region and internationally. NENT Group’s remaining studios operations will focus on delivering content for Viaplay and a new owner for NENT Studios UK means this business can continue to serve the global market. It is anticipated that the UK business will continue to supply content to NENT Group.

In 2020 NENT Studios UK has retained a roster of production company and co-producer partners which contribute to a catalogue of more than 13,500 hours of cross-genre premium content. This catalogue includes scripted titles such as Doc Martin (pictured) and The Cry, factual content such as Yorkshire Vet and My Grandparents’ War and international formats ranging from The Farm to Don’t Tell the Bride.

NENT Studios UK’s first original drama series, Close to Me - commissioned by Viaplay and being brought to the UK as an acquired co-production by Channel 4- that stars Connie Nielsen and Christopher Eccleston, is in production, while a second scripted series with a UK-led greenlight will be announced shortly. The company also has 15 shows in paid development with broadcasters and a rich internal development slate of around 40 projects. The company has announced new partnerships with companies such as Dopamine in Mexico and Crackit Productions in the UK, co-producing Close to Me with the former and acquiring 40 hours of factual content from the latter.

NENT Studios UK’s CEO Richard Halliwell will be involved in the sale process which is said to have expressions of interest from more than 20 UK and international businesses.

Commenting on the move, he said: “Despite the ongoing challenges the industry is facing with Covid-19, we have entered into and remained in production on Close to Me and are about to greenlight a second series that has been developed and fully financed during the pandemic. Our strategy of sitting at the very heart of content development and creation has been more than validated this year, and as these shows deliver, our approach will prove beneficial both to our partners and our business. Our focus now is on finding a new owner or investment partner to support our high ambitions and exciting plans for growth. We have a bright future as we move into 2021 and will use this period of change as a fresh opportunity to reinforce our position as a robust, innovative and vital player in the international content landscape.”

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NENT Studios UK seeks new owner
NOVEMBER 23, 2020 11.41 EUROPE/LONDON BY JULIAN CLOVER

NENT Studios UK, the London-based production arm of Nordic Entertainment Group, is looking for a new owner.

The process is being led by NENT Studios UK’s CEO Richard Halliwell. He says expressions of interest from more than 20 UK and international businesses.

As previously reported in Broadband TV News, NENT Group is divesting NENT Studios UK, along with a number of other production businesses to focus on the growth of its Viaplay streaming service. There are plans to launch in both Poland and the United States during 2021 as well as growing the established Nordic business further.

“I am very proud of my team, who have continuously found, developed, funded, produced, acquired and sold a wide range of scripted and unscripted content through these very uncertain times,” said Halliwell. “Our focus now is on finding a new owner or investment partner to support our high ambitions and exciting plans for growth. We have a bright future as we move into 2021 and will use this period of change as a fresh opportunity to reinforce our position as a robust, innovative and vital player in the international content landscape.”

NENT Studios UK’s first original drama series Close to Me (commissioned by Viaplay and being brought to the UK as an acquired co-production by Channel 4), starring Connie Nielsen and Christopher Eccleston, is in production, while a second scripted series with a UK-led greenlight will be announced shortly.

NENT Group’s remaining Studios operations will focus on delivering content for Viaplay and a new owner for NENT Studios UK means this business can continue to serve the global market.