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Capital Markets Event, 26 June 2019
STV announces further initiatives to accelerate digital and production growth
Ahead of a planned Capital Markets Event for analysts and investors today, STV announces a number initiatives designed to accelerate its digital and production growth.
· Acquisition of majority stake in award winning producer Primal Media
· STV Productions confirms new commissions and a first pilot format for STV
· Further enhancements to STV Player and new SVOD service, STV Player+
Acquisition of Primal Media
· The vision for STV Productions is to build a world class production business, based in Scotland, that takes full advantage of the growing local and global demand for high quality content;
· As part of this vision, STV has acquired a majority stake in award-winning unscripted producer Primal Media from the previous majority investor, Lionsgate. Founded in 2016 by Mat Steiner and Adam Wood, Primal Media has already created a range of successful formats including RTS award-winning Release the Hounds (ITV2); Rose D'Or-winning Bigheads (ITV) and Carnage (Sky One);
· This acquisition follows the strategic partnership announced by STV and Primal Media in February and will enable STV to realise full value from Primal's current and future programming slate. This includes current comedy series Jerk for BBC3 and two new programmes for C4, both currently in production;
· There is no upfront consideration payable by STV and the agreement includes the option for STV to acquire the remaining shares in the future. Until that time, Lionsgate will retain a minority stake in the business with the founders holding the remaining equity.
New commissions
· STV Productions' primary objective remains securing returnable and returning series commissions. Today we announce the recommission of six-part series Inside Central Station for BBC Scotland, which will go into production later this year. Further recommissions of Antiques Road Trip (series 19 and 20) and Celebrity Antiques Road Trip (series 9), as well as Celebrity Catchphrase for ITV, are also confirmed, all for 2019 delivery;
· Following the critical and popular success of drama series The Victim for BBC1, STV's next drama production, Elizabeth is Missing, also for BBC1, begins filming in Scotland next month. Two-time Academy Award winner Glenda Jackson will take the lead role;
· Additionally STV Productions will produce new quiz format, The Cash Machine, for STV. The six-part peak time entertainment series, hosted by Lorraine Kelly, is the first example of STV using its broadcast platform to pilot a high potential format, with filming commencing later in the summer;
· Craig Hunter, STV's highly regarded new Creative Director for Factual who was behind shows like Blue Planet Live and Inside the Factory while at the BBC, starts in July.
Digital enhancements
· Our digital vision is for the STV Player to become Scotland's digital destination, creating an STV for everyone;
· STV Player's launch on the Sky platform remains on track for Q4 2019, and will enable universal availability of STV Player in Scotland for the first time;
· We are also announcing a new partnership with US advanced advertising company Freewheel which will enable STV's premium digital advertising inventory to be monetised on the Sky platform. STV will sell its own advertising on Sky with no payaways and the Freewheel partnership has the potential to unlock other advanced advertising solutions in future;
· New content deals have been agreed with Endemol Shine and distributors TCB Media Rights and TVF bringing 300 hours of additional drama, documentary and factual entertainment programming to the STV Player. This builds on previous deals with Hopster, Flame, Jukin', Little Dot Studios and Eleven Sports, all designed to increase the appeal of STV Player to the widest possible audience;
· STV Player+, STV's new subscription service, launched successfully to Apple users in February and will be rolled out across all platforms by the year end;
· New features continue to be introduced to the STV Player across mobile, TV and web. These include 'live restart' on all live streaming platforms, 'next episode autoplay' and 'end of play recommendations', all designed to create a seamless and increasingly personalised viewing experience. 'Picture in Picture' will be launched across web and mobile shortly, allowing viewers to keep their favourite live shows on screen while they work, ideal for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, where STV and STV Player hold exclusive rights to all 48 live matches in Scotland.
Simon Pitts, Chief Executive, said: "It's a little over a year since we set out our new strategy to deliver production and digital growth and re-establish STV as a creative force in Scotland and beyond. With a new team fully in place we are building real momentum and delivering encouraging results.
"Programming successes like recent drama The Victim for BBC1 demonstrate our growing creative strength, and the acquisition of Primal Media - whose founders have an unrivalled track record of devising hit entertainment formats - will further strengthen our creative pipeline as we seek to become one of the UK's leading producers.
"Our digital vision is for the STV Player to become Scotland's digital destination. With our Sky launch later this year we will be universally accessible across Scotland for the first time, offering a fantastic range of exclusive, live and on demand content from STV and a range of other broadcasters, on a free or subscription basis. The highlight of the autumn will be exclusive coverage of all 48 matches of the Rugby World Cup, streamed live on STV and the STV Player in full HD.
"We look forward to maintaining this rapid progress, delivering our strategy and generating attractive returns for our shareholders."
Capital Markets Event
The Capital Markets Event for analysts and investors will be held at 3.30 p.m. today and hosted by Simon Pitts (CEO), David Mortimer (MD of Production) and Richard Williams (MD of Digital). A copy of the presentation will be available on the company's investor website following the event. The Company will not be disclosing new financial information.
Results Announcement
STV will announce its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2019 on 3 September 2019.
Ends
Enquiries:-
STV
Katie Martin, Communications Executive
Tel: 0141 300 3109/Mobile: 0772 567 9861
Camarco
Geoffrey Pelham-Lane, Partner /Ben Woodford, Partner
Tel: 0203 757 4985
Notes to editors
STV is Scotland's home of news and entertainment, serving audiences with quality content on air, online and on demand.
STV's broadcast channel, accessible free-to-air on all the main TV platforms in Scotland, reaches 3.5 million viewers each month and is home to some of the biggest and most popular show on television.
The channel's first-class content includes soaps Emmerdale and Coronation Street, big drama productions, entertainment hits Britain's Got Talent and The X Factor, strong home-grown productions and Scotland's best, most comprehensive and most trusted news service. Flagship news programme STV News at Six continues to grow its audience share.
The STV Player, STV's online VoD service, allows consumers in STV's broadcast licence areas to enjoy their favourite STV shows live or on demand. With almost 3m registered users, the STV Player is one of the fastest growing on-demand platforms in the UK.
The recently launched ad-free subscription version, STV Player+, offers an opportunity to watch STV programming without the adverts, download shows for offline viewing and watch abroad for the first time.
STV Productions is one of the UK's leading content businesses with ambitious plans for domestic and international growth.
The company has an impressive track-record of success across genres including drama, entertainment and factual, with commissions from a wide range of broadcasters.
Highlights include iconic game show Catchphrase for ITV, ratings winner Antiques Road Trip for BBC One, peak-time entertainment show Sex Tape, which recently aired on Channel 4, and documentaries Ross Kemp Behind Bars-Inside Barlinnie for ITV and Scotland and the Battle for Britain for BBC Two. In drama, four-part thriller The Victim for BBC One, starring Kelly Macdonald and John Hannah, was watched by more than 7.2 million people, and STV Productions has also confirmed a second BBC commission - 90 minute drama Elizabeth is Missing.
