Industry

 
Identifying the formats that have had noteworthy success over the last 12 months, ‘Tracking the Giants: The Top 100 Travelling Formats’ delivers the most sought-after insights into the unscripted format business around the world.

 
Following a year of major disruption, this fourth edition explores the available data more deeply than ever before. In the report, K7 Media offers a nuanced view on what has been sold in the past and what producers are betting on for the future years.
For the first time ever, the report welcomes a brand new section, ‘Tracking the Asian Giants’, shining a spotlight on trends in the region. Top Asian formats and key players are analysed in detail.

 
With much of the most interesting activity in the unscripted format market coming from this region, K7 Media has named South Korea as ‘Territory of the Year’. The report notes that it has firmly established itself as a market heavyweight, with ‘Rising Market of The Year’, Vietnam, emerging as one of the most prolific importers of formats and the most active buyer in the region for the third year running.

In its 2020 TV predictions, K7 Media projected that Vietnam would be Asia’s next boom market. Consistent data does, in fact, suggest that the country is positioned to become a major player in format sales for the territory.
Unsurprisingly, the top performing genres of 2020 include quiz shows, talent shows, challenge-based game shows and factual entertainment dating shows. Interestingly, the fifth best performing genre cited in the report is Factual Entertainment Society. These are shows that are about communities, cooperation, and shared nostalgia; almost uplifting in tone.
The report notes that, given the global situation in 2020, it’s easy to see where this demand is coming from. One recurring trend reported across all genres is an appetite for the familiar, the reassuring, the nostalgic.
Discussing ‘Tracking the Giants’, K7 Media’s CEO & Founder, Keri Lewis Brown, said: “This last year has been unusual to say the least – with the TV industry unable to gather for its traditional events, but also benefiting from audiences that were compelled to stay at home, looking for a distraction from the real world. This may explain why we’ve seen the format market remaining resilient in the face of extraordinary problems, with sales and production options remaining steady.

“For this fourth edition of Tracking the Giants, we’ve explored data more deeply than ever before, introducing new categories, including, ‘Territory of the Year’ and ‘Public Service Format of the year’, as well as the in-depth analysis on the special focus Tracking the Asian Giants.
“We also note from direct conversations with companies around the world, many have taken the last year to refocus on developing new formats. If this is true across the industry, it seems likely that the 2021 and 2022 markets will see an exciting number of fresh launches that could shake things up in ways we’ve not seen since the format boom of the early 2000s.”
The ‘Tracking the Giants’ series relies on comparable data to pinpoint the underlying trends in scripted and unscripted programme sales. The annual in-depth reports are recognised within the industry as the leading guide to global format sales.
K7 Media offers bespoke research and media consulting services to broadcasters, streaming platforms, distributors and production companies. It continues to expand its current range of client services, while maintaining the delivery of highly sought after media reports.

 
‘Tracking the Giants’ is now available to those subscribed to K7 Media’s services and this edition to be made available to additional industry partners; to learn more about the business and the services it provides, visit the - https://k7.media/.