Barclays Corporate Banking has announced a doubling to £200 million ($256 million) of its fund to help British TV producers develop content for streaming services.
The £100 million ($128 million) fund was launched in March 2017 in “response to the rapidly evolving TV production landscape,” according to a statement, with the rise of subscription video-on-demand services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video “changing the way that original programming is financed.”
Conventional TV production loans are usually repaid as the content is delivered, with the broadcaster paying the production company and funder simultaneously. With Svod, payment from the subscription service is often spread over a much longer term, which can present funding challenges, the bank said.
Projects that have benefited from Barclays support include £17.5 million ($22.4 million) to Drama Republic for the BBC/Netflix co-production “Black Earth Rising,” financing to Lime Pictures for the Netflix show “Free Rein,” and funding for a series of “Octonauts” specials for Silvergate Media.
The £100 million ($128 million) fund was launched in March 2017 in “response to the rapidly evolving TV production landscape,” according to a statement, with the rise of subscription video-on-demand services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video “changing the way that original programming is financed.”
Conventional TV production loans are usually repaid as the content is delivered, with the broadcaster paying the production company and funder simultaneously. With Svod, payment from the subscription service is often spread over a much longer term, which can present funding challenges, the bank said.
Projects that have benefited from Barclays support include £17.5 million ($22.4 million) to Drama Republic for the BBC/Netflix co-production “Black Earth Rising,” financing to Lime Pictures for the Netflix show “Free Rein,” and funding for a series of “Octonauts” specials for Silvergate Media.
- 11/21/2018
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Barclays Bank has doubled the size of its fund to help British production companies develop programming for Svod services such as Netflix and Amazon.
Last year, the British bank launched a £100M (Us$130M) fund to address cashflow problems faced by British producers as they win business from the digital platforms. They have now doubled this fund to £200M (Us$260M).
British broadcasters generally cashflow productions at the point of commission, although different networks offer different terms and arrangements, whereas the likes of Netflix and Amazon pay on delivery, which can make it harder for smaller companies to afford to do business with them.
Since the financial scheme was set up, Barclays has supported indies such as Drama Republic, which received £17.5M (Us$23M) for its BBC/Netflix co-pro Black Earth Rising and Lime Pictures, which was helped on teen horse drama Free Rein.
Denis Wray, Financial Controller at Drama Republic,...
Last year, the British bank launched a £100M (Us$130M) fund to address cashflow problems faced by British producers as they win business from the digital platforms. They have now doubled this fund to £200M (Us$260M).
British broadcasters generally cashflow productions at the point of commission, although different networks offer different terms and arrangements, whereas the likes of Netflix and Amazon pay on delivery, which can make it harder for smaller companies to afford to do business with them.
Since the financial scheme was set up, Barclays has supported indies such as Drama Republic, which received £17.5M (Us$23M) for its BBC/Netflix co-pro Black Earth Rising and Lime Pictures, which was helped on teen horse drama Free Rein.
Denis Wray, Financial Controller at Drama Republic,...
- 11/21/2018
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
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