BEIN MOTOR SPORTS REVVING UP IN ASIA
beIN Sports has picked up exclusive rights to the Formula 1 World Championships in ten territories across Asia. The new media rights agreement begins this year and runs until the conclusion of the 2025 championship.
The ten Asian territories included in the agreement are Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Timor-Leste, Philippines, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. In many territories in Asia, Formula One previously played on the Disney-owned Fox Sports channels.
The new deal includes rights to all Grand Prix races, the new sprint races, qualifying and practice sessions.
Coverage begins with the season opener, in Bahrain from 3-5 March, and runs through to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from 24-26 November.
The coverage will be available on major pay-tv platforms in the region, including on beIN’s live streaming app, beIN Sports Connect.
STORM WARNING
Jonas Baur will take the role as executive producer for the ARD long-running telenovela “Storm of Love” (original title: “Sturm der Liebe”), succeeding Bea Schmidt. Baur has been working for Bavaria Fiction since Oct. 2022, reporting to Marcus Ammon, MD of content. The creator and long-time executive producer of “Storm of Love,” Bea Schmidt, will leave Bavaria after 27 years, during which she developed respectively produced series such as “In Aller Freundschaft,” “Schloss Einstein” and “The Rosenheim Cops,” as well as movie franchises including “Utta Danella.”
“Storm of Love” airs Mondays to Fridays at 3:10 p.m. on Das Erste and achieved an average market share of 12.2% in 2022. 730,000 views per episode were registered in the digital platform ARD Mediathek during this period. In December 2022, the successful telenovela was extended for another two seasons with a further 330 new episodes. “Storm of Love” is also successful internationally and has been sold by Bavaria Media to more than 25 countries, including ORF in Austria and Mediaset in Italy.
MICHELLE YEOH TO BE HonORED BY LonDON CRITICS’ CIRCLE
Michelle Yeoh will receive the top career honor bestowed by the London Critics’ Circle during their 43rd awards ceremony on Sunday Feb. 5 at The May Fair Hotel.
“Michelle Yeoh has been a favorite of the London critics from her earliest Hong Kong outings, even before she teamed up with James Bond in ‘Tomorrow Never Dies,’ said Rich Cline, Chair of the Critics’ Circle Film Section in a statement. “And we named her blockbuster fantasy ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ the foreign-language film of the year 2000,” he added, going on to note Yeoh’s “Unique ability to combine take-no-prisoners action, wry humor and deeper emotional resonance in her roles.”
Yeoh is currently in pre-production on Jon M. Chu’s “Wicked” in which she will play Madame Morrible. She recently wrapped production on Kenneth Branagh’s “A Haunting in Venice.”
STARZ PLAY ARABIA SET TO LAUNCH FIRST ARABIC LANGUAGE ORIGINAL
Emirati studio Image Nation Abu Dhabi and Starz Play Arabia have announced the launch ofStarz Play’s first Arabic language original, a horror anthology series titled“Kaboos” that will drop on the platform on Feb. 9.
Set in different eras and across various MENA region countries, “Kaboos”is a contemporary retelling of Arab folklore, featuring five standalone episodes inspired by regional myths that are set in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt and the UAE. Each episode is directed by the following different Arab directors: Majid Al Ansari (“Zinzana,” “Paramormal”); Hana Kazim (“Makr”); Yasir Al Yasiri (“122”); Ahmed Khaled (“30 March”) and Hala Matar (“Streetcar”).The show is produced for Image Nation by Yasir Al Yasiri’s and Mansoor Al Feeli’s production company, Starship Entertainment.
SOCCER COVERAGE
IMG will produce U.K. broadcaster Channel 4’s coverage of England men’s soccer, including UEFA Nations League matches, European qualifiers and international friendlies, for the next two years.
IMG will produce the live match feed and highlights show for Channel 4’s remaining 14 games throughout 2023 and 2024, starting with England’s European qualifier against defending champions Italy on March 23. IMG will also deliver UEFA’s regular magazine show to partners, alongside digital and social content for 4Studios.
The deal marks an extension of IMG’s agreement to produce Channel 4’s coverage of England’s six UEFA Nations League fixtures last year. IMG also currently produces the channel’s live coverage of Betfred Super League rugby, which is being shown on free-to-air television for the first time in the competition’s 26-year history.
IMG’s international soccer production credits include the FIFA World Cup, the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), the English Football League highlights show for ITV, and UEFA Champions League coverage for CBS. IMG is also the English Premier League’s international production partner, producing and distributing the world feed for all 380 matches each season alongside creative digital and social content.
