Leonine Studios acquires SEO Entertainment
Details
Joseph O'Halloran
| 20 December 2020
Leading independent German content house Leonine Studios has announced that it is acquire Munich-based production company SEO Entertainment, in a deal effective from 1 January 2021.

Gillad Osterer SEO Entertainment 20Dec2020SEO Entertainment was co-founded in 2008 by current MD Gillad Osterer. The company produces television formats for private and public broadcasters in Germany and Europe, specialising in the field of light entertainment, documentaries and comedy. Among the award-winning productions it has include Das Lachen Der Anderen (German Television Award, WDR) and Applaus Und Raus (Grimme Award, ProSieben) while current premium productions include Feuer Und Flamme (WDR) and Your Life Is A Joke (Netflix). On completion of the deal, SEO Entertainment will remain an independent company and become part of the Leonine Production division within Leonine Studios.

With SEO Entertainment, Leonine Studios is expanding its production range with added entertainment genres and claims to now cover the entire spectrum of premium film, TV and OTT production as well as the creating new formats for social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook or Instagram for scripted and non-scripted content in all genres. The Leonine Production segment now comprises the production brands i&u TV, Odeon Entertainment, Odeon Fiction, SEO Entertainment, W&B Television and Wiedemann & Berg Film.

As the deal completes, Osterer will remain MD of SEO Entertainment and in this function will report directly to Leonine Studios CEO Fred Kogel. Commenting on the deal he said: “With SEO Entertainment, we are pleased to welcome another successful, creative and innovative production company …SEO expands our range of services with attractive light entertainment, documentary and comedy content and is an excellent addition to our entertainment division at our production site in Munich. The company has an excellent team and Gillad Osterer is an outstanding producer who has inspired us time and time again with his creative ideas. We look forward to unlocking additional growth potential in working together.”

Osterer (pictured), added: “I am particularly pleased that SEO is ‘docking on’ to what I believe is currently the most attractive European media company. Not only from a content point of view does this result in an exciting growth perspective, the overall concept of Leonine Studios has absolutely convinced me on a human level as well. I am very much looking forward to working together in a great team.”