When Comcast-owned Deutschland cancelled its usual drama event at the Munich Film Festival at short notice last summer, it came as a surprise. That surprise quickly turned to shock and bitter disappointment when the pay-TV giant revealed it wasn’t simply nixing a networking bash, it was exiting the original drama business full stop. More bad news followed as the local impact of Paramount Global reining in spend on original international drama kicked in – German shows were yanked off the streamer and projects in the works canned.
This wasn’t that long after had pulled out and Starz Play closing simply added to a stream of bad news. Apple, and remain in the German drama business, but commission in such low volume that it is the thinnest of silver linings for the vast majority of local scripted prodcos. The strategy at , easily the most active of the streamers, is a talking point right now, as well.
That’s why as we head into the next edition of the Munich Film Festival, many see Germany’s TV drama market nearing an inflection point, and believe coming months will shape things for many years to come. Despite remaining the giant of European mainland broadcasting, there are widespread fears from production sources that hundreds of projects in development will never see the light of day or will create a log-jam that stifles new projects. It was the talk of the industry at the festival and conference earlier this month.
Indeed, the global streaming market correction is bei.
