ITV snaps up Tiny World producer Plimsoll Productions for £103m
ITV have nabbed a majority stake in natural history programme maker Plimsoll Productions this morning for £103.5m as the broadcasters eyes up more diverse content.
Acquiring a 79.5 per cent stake, the deal marks a grand push by the British television giant to align itself more closely with US streaming big dogs: Plimsoll has worked with both Apple and Netflix to produce Tiny World and Animal respectively.
The Academy award-winning producer has made hundreds of hours of content which is watched, and sold, in nearly 200 countries.
Plimsoll generated EBITDA of £10m for the 12 months to 31 August 2021. Under ITV’s ownership, Plimsoll will report to a calendar year and under ITV’s episodic revenue recognition policy. On this basis Plimsoll is forecasted to deliver EBITDA of around £5.5m in H2 2022.
Commenting on the move, ITV chief Carolyn McCall said: “Growing ITV Studios with an exciting pipeline of premium programmes is core to our strategy as we further diversify the business by genre, by geography, by customer and grow ahead of the market.”
Grant Mansfield, CEO Plimsoll Productions said: “The significant opportunities in the international premium unscripted market make this the perfect time for Plimsoll to join ITV Studios. There is a quite special strategic and cultural fit that will enable us to achieve our, now shared, creative and commercial ambitions for Plimsoll. We’re excited to be part of ITV Studios’ expanding global force in content and delighted that, from today, this powerful new partnership is officially active.”
The news comes as the British broadcasting landscape faces a major shakeup, with privatisation plans for rival Channel 4 ongoing
It was reported earlier this year that ITV was set to launch a takeover bid for Channel 4 following the government’s announcement that the broadcaster is set to go up for sale.