Press Release

Berlin, 14th December 2009 – ALL3MEDIA Deutschland GmbH and BBC Worldwide today announced a joint venture to form a production company Tower Productions GmbH. Tower Productions will produce a range of BBC Worldwide formats in Germany and will collaborate closely with Worldwide’s international format development team in London. The new company will also be developing their own formats.

Tower Productions, based in Cologne, will be headed up by Stefan Oelze, management board member of ALL3MEDIA German subsidiary, MME MOVIEMENT AG, and Dr. Markus Schäfer, managing director of ALL3MEDIA Deutschland GmbH. They will be working with Colin Jarvis, BBC Worldwide’s Director of International Formats, as a management team.

Stefan Oelze, Managing Director of Tower Productions: “This is an honour for us, and BBC Worldwide’s decision to enter into this agreement with us in Germany underscores the international reputation of the MME MOVIEMENT Group. Tower now has the ability to work with one of the largest and most diverse format catalogues in the world. We are already entering into negotiations with broadcasters on initial projects.

“Armed with the rights catalogue of our parent company ALL3MEDIA and the BBC Worldwide catalogue, we now possess one of the most appealing suites of international formats on the German market.”

Wayne Garvie, Managing Director of Content & Production for BBC Worldwide:
“We are very excited to have the MME MOVIEMENT Group as a partner in Germany, one of the most successful production companies in this competitive key market. I’m sure that Tower will very quickly become one of the most dynamic producers in Europe. And, of course, working with ALL3MEDIA illustrates BBC Worldwide partners with the very best of British”.

Steve Morrison CEO ALL3MEDIA:
“This is a terrific opportunity to combine the experience we have as a leading producer in Germany with the quality and depth of the internationally renowned BBCW format catalogue. We are delighted to be able to offer the largest TV market in Europe the best of BBCW and A3M content. We have a winning combination!”

Tower Productions joins BBC Worldwide’s growing local production network that includes wholly owned bases in Mumbai, Paris, New York and Los Angeles, partners in Toronto, Sydney and Buenos Aires and preferred partners in Moscow and Sao Paolo.

The new production company strengthens BBC Worldwide’s presence in Germany, working alongside their Cologne based Sales and Distribution business which continues with Television and DVD sales, Co-Production and Digital Media activity in this territory.

Notes to Editors:

About BBC Worldwide Content and Production programme investment BBC Worldwide Content and Production investment into BBCcommissioned programmes (in house and independently produced) increased by 12.1% in 2008/9, to £84.2million.

About BBC Worldwide

BBC Worldwide Limited is the main commercial arm and a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). The company exists to maximise the value of the BBC’s assets for the benefit of the licence fee payer and invest in public service programming in return for rights. The company has seven core businesses: Channels, Content & Production, Digital Media, Sales & Distribution, Magazines, Home Entertainment and Global Brands. In 2008/09, BBC Worldwide generated profits of £102.6 million (before exceptionals) on sales of over £1 billion.

BBC Worldwide was awarded with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in April 2009. This prestigious award for International Trade recognised the company’s substantial growth in overseas earnings and commercial success at outstanding levels, based on 3 years’ trading results, which benefit the UK creative industries and ultimately the licence fee payer.

About ALL3MEDIA

Founded in 2003, All3Media is one of Britain's largest and fastest growing Groups of Independent TV production companies. There are 15 companies in the Group plus its own International and Format programme distribution arm, ALL3MEDIA International. ALL3MEDIA has offices in the UK, United States, Germany, The Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand.

The ALL3MEDIA Group of companies includes some of the most creative talent and produces leading programme brands including Midsomer Murders; Shameless; Hollyoaks; The Gadget Show; Saturday Kitchen and Skins.

ALL3MEDIA Deutschland is one of the leading TV producers in Germany and includes within its companies: filmpool Film- und Fernsehproduktion GmbH, MME Me, Myself & Eye Entertainment GmbH, IdTV Deutschland Film- und Fernsehproduktion GmbH and white balance GmbH. It produces programmes for all major public and private stations in the programming areas of fiction, nonfiction, documentary and show/music.