Format

FRAPA, the Format Recognition and Protection Association, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, has announced several changes to its executive team as it restructures to meet the challenges of a content industry in transition.

The Association has appointed three influential format executives from the US, the UK and Italy — Blink49’s Adam Steinman, Shimmer Media’s Pascal Dalton and Formatbiz’s Maria Chiara Duranti respectively — to its advisory board, as BBC Studios Nordics’ Jan Salling steps down as co-chair after 10 years in service. Mike Beale, ITV Studios’ managing director, creative network, is also standing down from the management board after a five-year stint.

Salling and Beale have been named Lifetime FRAPA Ambassadors in recognition of their many years of service to both FRAPA and the global formats industry. Salling’s fellow co-chair, The Gurin Company/TGC Global Entertainment’s Phil Gurin, will now serve as the Association’s sole chairman.

Steinman, Dalton and Chiara Duranti bring a wealth of experience to the FRAPA community. Los Angeles-based Steinman recently joined Blink49 Studios as executive vice-president of formats and acquisitions, charged with identifying, securing and developing scripted and unscripted formats, and leveraging his two-plus decades of international experience to expand Toronto headquartered Blink49’s global television footprint and format output. In addition to a 12-year term as a senior formats executive with Warner Bros. International Television Production, Steinman’s CV includes a multi-year deal with Walt Disney Television and string of global format hits, including Impractical Jokers, The Bachelor franchise, Who Do You Think You Are?, Cash Cab and Little Big Shots.

Dalton, meanwhile, has worked for several of the biggest format players in the business, including Endemol Group, EndemolShine and, most recently, ITV Studios, where he was recently head of brand partnerships for North EMEA (formats licensing and sales). In this role he was responsible for 26 territories and some of the market’s most powerful format brands, including Love Island, I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here, The Chase, My Mum, Your Dad and Come Dine with Me. He was originally hired by ITV Studios as VP of global format sales where he led the global roll out of Love Island across ROW territories. In late 2024, he launched consultancy and distribution business Shimmer Media, which provides international business strategy and monetises both scripted and unscripted formats for third parties. He is also chief business development officer on a fractional basis for international gaming specialist Inviox Studios.

A well-known name on the international formats scene, Maria Chiara Duranti is founder and chief editor of press and media agency Formatbiz, which focuses on format trends, markets and content innovation. Before launching Formatbiz in 2009, she spent 15 years at Mediaset Italy. Her CV also includes stints at Telecinco Spain and Bloomberg Television, where she worked as an anchor, writer and producer. Chiara Duranti’s expertise spans strategic planning, media research, international relationship management, marketing, business development and event planning. She is also a sought-after analyst and consultant, and a member of the International Academy of Television Art & Sciences.

FRAPA chairman Phil Gurin, president and CEO of The Gurin Company/TGC Global Entertainment, said: “As we enter our 25th year, FRAPA is working hard to stay relevant and reinvent itself for the future. Central to this ambition is to assemble a multinational, multi-hyphenate board capable of guiding both FRAPA and the formats community it serves through a media market battling fragmentation, economic instability and the existential threat of AI. Adam, Pascal and Maria bring enormous skill, insight and global expertise to our mission to serve as the conscience of the format community. And, as part of our ongoing commitment to offer tangible value to our membership, we will also be announcing a raft of new initiatives and services in the coming months. Stay tuned!”

Pascal Dalton said: "FRAPA stands as the moral compass of our industry, a true North Star guiding the format business for everyone involved. I'm absolutely thrilled to join the board and eager to serve FRAPA's members, while collaborating with my esteemed fellow board members."