Advanced Television

Germany and Portugal comeback for Big Brother

April 4, 2013

Proving that there is still some life left in classic TV formats, Endemol, the world’s largest independent production company, has revealed that reality juggernaut Big Brother is making a comeback in two further markets.

In Germany, the show is returning for the first time since 2011 having been commissioned by Sat.1 for a new celebrity series, which will launch later this year. Endemol Germany previously produced 11 series of Big Brother for RTL II starting in 2000.

In Portugal. the show is returning to TVI for the first time in ten years for a celebrity version that is scheduled for launch soon. Endemol Portugal previously produced six series for the channel, which first broadcast the show in 2000

The commissions are the latest in a series of comebacks for the format, which has successfully returned in territories such as the UK, where the show is now an established hit on Channel 5 and Australia, where having previously aired on Ten Network until 2008 the show’s return on Nine Network in August 2012 was a breakout hit.

14 years after its launch in the Netherlands, Big Brother continues to be a hit in the USA, UK, Australia, France, Italy, Spain, Canada and Israel as well as in Latin America, Central and Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, Africa and Asia. Over 20 series were broadcast in over 60 countries in 2012.

In February, it was also announced that Endemol India will launch two regional language productions of the format in addition to the long running national Hindi version.

Iris Boelhouwer, Endemol’s Managing Director of Creative Operations, said that most big formats tend to have a lifespan of around five years or so, but Big Brother had broken this rule more than twice over. The format is still a trailblazer, which continues to roll out in new territories and deliver hit ratings in the major markets. It’s here to stay,” she averred.

Big Brother’s most recent outing was in Brazil, where the thirteenth and first ever 3D series wrapped up on Globo TV on March 26th with a 58 per cent share; outperforming 2012’s finale by nearly 30 per cent. Overall, the series averaged a 51 per cent share and 24 million viewers; a 13 per cent increase on last season’s average.

 

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