“Being a TV production company is the basis of Banijay Germany, but we’re an entertainment business and creators are part of entertainment now, that’s a fact,” says Marcus Wolter.
The Banijay Germany founder and CEO is describing to Deadline he and his team have developed their operation from a traditional TV player behind local hits such as Schlag de Star (Beat the Star), Kitchen Impossible and Big Brother Germany into an operation that spans a talent agency, production studios, live events and an influencer biz.
Everything, he continues, is centered around “brand building and creativity,” with the objective to sustain – and combine – the traditional TV production business with work in the growing German creator economy. The initial idea for the model came out of the talent business Banijay Germany had established, when it became clear there were a number of creators who were breaking out and could go even further with his backing.
One, SelfieSandra, was signed to Banijay Germany’s Only Good People. Having built a large online following in Germany, she used her platform while performing as a contestant on RTL reality show Let’s Dance and will next host reality series Make Love, Fake Love, which will also be for RTL.
Another is Knossi, a presenter, poker commentator and live streamer who has become one of Germany’s biggest stats. The self-proclaimed ‘König des Internets’ (King of the Internet) has worked with Banijay Germany on Endemol Shine Germany’s Big Brother Knossi Edition, Banijay Productions Germany’s Mission Unknown: Atlantic and Three Are the Champions, the entertainment format Banijay Entertainment launched globally last MIPCOM.
“We began to work and learn from them, but it was not just [combining] a TV show and creator, but much more than that, as these are different worlds and different audiences,” says Wolter. “We had to go deeper into this business to be success.”
Unorthodox approach from orthodox background
The interesting thing about this unorthodox approach is that while Wolter is a likeable personality and an intelligent company leader, his background is very much in linear broadcasting – miles from the digital creators he so admires. Early in his career, he spent years as a program director for German participation TV channel 9Live before moving to Endemol, which later became Endemol Shine Germany. In 2018, Banijay decided to establish Banijay Germany, and Wolter was the obvious choice for founding CEO.
Despite that seemingly traditional past, Wolter is embracing different business models. At the core of his philosophy is brand building, something that is as important in the creator economy as it is in the TV world. At the core of his plan was establishing if Banijay could consistently create titles such as reality series Mission Unknown: Atlantic – a series in which 12 social media creators (including Knossi) voyaged across the Atlantic Ocean in two competing boats – and then monetize them well beyond the traditional pathways.
“In our minds, the change was using the reach of the creators, who made their own stories,” says Wolter. “Then we attracted big brands before we licensed everything to Prime Video Germany as a final step. It was a reality show but it was different, in terms of cast, the business model and the platform, as we were using the YouTube reach and the TikTok reach of the creators.”
In 2022, Banijay Germany invested in Austria-based tech and influencer platform influence.vision, which had run marketing campaigns for the likes of Volkswagen and Samsung. It took a majority stake this year, with influence.vision’s creative talent having integrated themselves into TV productions such as Kitchen Impossible by reinterpreting recipes from the Vox show in their own content.
“They share the same values that Banijay has,” says Wolter of influence.vision founders Branko Markovic and Florian Bösenkopf. “They are absolutely independent, and they want to bring something from scratch and take it to the next level. They built up a platform that brings brands together with the creators.”
Several of those signed to Banijay Germany’s talent agencies SR Management and Only Good People are now part of the influence.vision platform, which Wolter says “makes it easier to attract the big brands” and monetize their content.
As for why owning talent agencies is key – and this will ring familiar to the major talent firms in the U.S. – it’s all about building talent into brands and packaging for buyers. “It’s very important to integrate the right talent,” says Wolter. He adds that his company ecosystem allows signings to find extra value in their content, while giving Banijay Germany’s suite of production companies a more complete package to take to streamers and broadcasters.
Arguably, this structure sets Banijay Germany apart from other territory-specific Banijay companies, who have looked to different strategies to find and break new talent. As Banijay continues to be linked with a takeover of ITV Studios, its individual units all need future-facing business models to survive in a world of tech giants and consolidating U.S. media players.
‘The value of independence’
Underpinning everything at Banijay Germany is a focus on “the value of independence,” as Wolter puts it. “If we want to create a new brand, it has to be independent of genre, platform and even a little of the business model,” he says. “There have to be different ways to create the business model. This is the reason why we needed to build an ecosystem – to be more flexible and more independent.”
Despite the tough environment facing Germany’s broadcasters, Banijay Germany’s labels have consistently produced returning series such as Temptation Island, Battle of the Reality Stars, Who Wants to be a Millionaire?, Tatort and Dragons’ Den for the nation’s top networks. Beat the Star, which first aired back in 2005, just delivered its biggest ever market share (23%) and drew more than 50 million in social impressions for a June episode, while The 50, another reality show for Prime Video, has been “very successful,” according to Wolter.
“Germany is a good market if you have strong brands,” he adds. “From a streamer or broadcaster perspective, it’s not the time to go for adventures and take very high risks, and it’s a time of consolidation in the production market, but if you own strong producers, strong IP and brands, and are ready to deliver for a good price, it’s a good market. That is what we work for.”
Meanwhile, Banijay Entertainment has recently been pointing to a report by the European Audiovisual Observatory that shows it is Europe’s top scripted producer by number of titles and countries in which it produces. Today, Banijay Germany’s MadeFor Film, which has been working on a Netflix reboot of local comedy hit Stromberg, was announced as a co-producer on crime series Bust Up starring Morgana O’Reilly (The White Lotus) and Roimata Fox (A Remarkable Place to Die) – a co-production with Lippy Pictures for Sky New Zealand and ZDF.
Still, unscripted makes up about 70% of the Banijay Germany slate, a number that could change in the coming years depending on production cycles. “As long as we have so many creators, it’s not easy to say what the range will be in the future,” says Wolter.
Whatever the case, that future will be driven by the ecosystem Wolter and Banijay German have built, and by the need to continue the transformation into an entertainment producer working across TV, film, talent, the creator economy and live events.
“Our core business is always building brands so our first, second and third strategies are to create and build even more,” says Wolter. That is what we are doing. We are strengthening our ecosystem to create even more independence, and this will make our companies even stronger.”