Six years after acquiring Endemol Shine in the midst of the pandemic, Banijay (“Big Brother,” “Peaky Blinders”) has entered into a merger deal with All3 Media (“The Traitors”) to form an even larger production company.
The new company will be called Banijay and will be jointly owned by Banijay Group and Redbird IMI, which acquired All3Media in 2024, with each holding a 50% stake. The transaction is expected to close by the fall, after which Banijay Entertainment CEO Marco Bassetti will become CEO of the newly created group, and All3Media CEO Jane Turton will become deputy CEO. Jeff Zucker, CEO of RedBird IMI, will become Chairman of the Board.
The consortium’s revenue will be approximately $6.65 billion based on 2024 numbers, giving Banner significant scale in an increasingly consolidated market.
“Since our founding, Banijay has been driven by entrepreneurial spirit, ambition and creativity. In the next phase of our journey, this DNA will remain integral to our efforts to build a media and entertainment company that is unique on the world stage and can stand the test of time,” Bassetti said in a statement. “Companies that can attract and retain the best talent, companies that have the real investment wherewithal to ideate and build tomorrow’s franchises and live events, and companies that can lead the way in introducing new technologies, new platforms and new routes to audiences: truly diversified media and entertainment powerhouses.”
All3Media’s Turton added: “All3Media has grown into a globally successful creative business since its founding in 2003. First and foremost, we are a group where creativity and commercial excellence go hand in hand. We value talent and believe in collaboration, ambition and innovation in both the creation and production of amazing programs and great financial returns. We look forward to working with Marco as All3Media and Banijay embark on the next exciting phase.”
Banijay is owned by French entrepreneur Stéphane Courbit, is listed on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, and has over 130 production companies in 25 regions. All3Media, which was acquired by RedBird IMI for £1.15bn in May 2024 following deals with Warner Bros Discovery and Liberty Global, operates more than 40 labels and has a significant presence in key markets including the UK, US and Germany.
All3Media’s portfolio of companies includes Studio Lambert, which produces Squid Game: The Challenge and The Traitors, as well as Two Brothers (The Tourist) and Neal Street, which is producing Sam Mendes’ Beatles biopic for Sony. Banijay Entertainment, on the other hand, is behind MasterChef, Big Brother, Survivor, Black Mirror, Peaky Blinders, Deal or No Deal and the Kalpa trilogy.
The combined banner boasts one of the world’s largest libraries, with 220,000 hours from Banijay Rights and approximately 35,000 hours from All3Media International.
Since 2013, under Bassetti’s leadership, Banijay has diversified into live entertainment through the labels Balich Wonder Studio (produced, among others, for the opening ceremonies of the Milan-Cortina Olympics) and Independents.
Back in October, Bassetti told Variety, “The M&A market is not a top priority for us today. We are happy with where we are and believe we have the right size and the right people in charge.” The tight-lipped Italian executive may have changed his mind, citing ongoing market consolidation and the need to build scale and leverage to deal with a decline in streamers and broadcasters.
The year kicked off with Media One acquiring Peter Chernin’s North Road and David Ellison’s Paramount acquiring Warner Bros. for $110 billion (and announcing that HBO Max and Paramount+ would be combined into one streaming service). Meanwhile, ITV began talks late last year to sell its media and entertainment division to Comcast’s pay-TV group Sky for $2.18 billion, but Reuters reported last month that talks had “slowed down in recent weeks”.
