Banijay <a href="https://axiomcore.info/pro-shop-raises-24-million-series-b-to-expand-golf-media-entertainment-and-commerce-platform/” title=”Pro Shop Raises $24 Million Series B To Expand Golf Media, Entertainment, And Commerce Platform”>Entertainment CEO Marco Bassetti and chairman Jeff Zucker Oct. 12 at MIPCOM Cannes 2026 took the stage together for the first time since Banijay’s July merger with All3Media. (Media Play News staff photo)
CANNES, France — Banijay Entertainment may be the world’s largest independent television production company, but its top executives say the recently merged entertainment powerhouse has ambitions that extend far beyond making television shows.
“We are an entertainment company,” CEO Marco Bassetti said Oct. 12 during a keynote discussion at MIPCOM Cannes. “We aren’t anymore just the production company.”
Bassetti and Banijay Entertainment chairman Jeff Zucker took the stage together for the first time since Banijay’s July merger with All3Media, a combination that created a global entertainment giant with operations in 25 countries and a content library exceeding 265,000 hours.
The company, which would have generated more than €4.3 billion in revenue in 2025 on a combined basis, boasts some of television’s biggest franchises, including “Big Brother,” “Survivor,” “MasterChef” and “The Traitors,” along with scripted hits such as “Peaky Blinders,” “Black Mirror” and “House of Guinness.”
But Bassetti and Zucker said the future lies in leveraging those properties, along with new intellectual property, across a broad range of distribution platforms and revenue streams, including streaming, digital media, sports and live entertainment.
“Obviously, the scripted and unscripted strength — nobody’s ever going to take that away,” Zucker said. “But the other — live entertainment, digital — the strength of Little Dot Studios and Banijay Rights together is unparalleled. Live, digital and sports. So you go across scripted, unscripted, live, digital and sports. This is a new entertainment company.”
He added, “The world’s largest independent production company — yes, we don’t run away from that, but we are much more than that.”
The merger, announced in March and completed July 9, brought together Banijay Entertainment and All3Media, which was acquired in 2024 by RedBird IMI, the investment venture headed by Zucker. The combined company is jointly owned by Banijay Group and RedBird IMI, each with a 50% stake.
Speaking with moderator Cynthia Littleton, co-editor in chief of Variety, Zucker recalled how Bassetti reached out almost immediately after RedBird IMI acquired All3Media.
“Literally the week that that closed, Marco called me on the phone and said, ‘Let’s talk,’” Zucker recalled. “I said, ‘Nice to meet you, Marco. Can I just have a minute?’”
The deal took nearly two years to materialize, including an intervening period when RedBird IMI pursued a potential combination with ITV Studios.
Bassetti said the attraction was the complementary nature of the two businesses, particularly All3Media’s strength in English-language programming and digital distribution, combined with Banijay’s expansive international production footprint.
That global reach, he said, gives the company a competitive advantage in developing and exploiting programming internationally.
“We are producing in 25 countries,” Bassetti said, noting that successful formats can be adapted for individual markets, creating additional value from the same underlying intellectual property.
Equally important, he said, is having the financial re
“It’s important to have money to invest in order to retain the IP,” Bassetti said.
He maintained that Banijay wants to be viewed not merely as a supplier of programming but as a partner capable of developing, distributing and monetizing entertainment properties across multiple platforms.
One example of that diversification is Little Dot Studios, the digital media business acquired through All3Media, which specializes in distributing and monetizing programming on YouTube and other digital platforms.
Another is live entertainment. Zucker cited “LUMINISCENCE,” an immersive experience currently running at New York’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral, as evidence of how Banijay is moving into businesses that generate revenue beyond conventional television production and distribution.
“Everybody knows Banijay for the great super brands that Banijay has, whether it’s ‘MasterChef,’ ‘Big Brother,’ ‘Survivor,’ ‘The Traitors,’ etc.,” Zucker said. “But there’s incredible strength on the scripted side, in both television and film, in fact.”
He said the company is particularly enthusiastic about building on that programming foundation to expand into digital media, live experiences and sports.
The executives also expressed interest in expanding Banijay’s scripted television business in the United States, a market where the company has historically had a more limited presence.
“I think that scripted for us is an opportunity to grow, definitely,” Bassetti said, citing the company’s existing production operations in Europe and other international markets.
Zucker agreed, pointing to Banijay’s financial re
“We are incredibly well capitalized now. We are ambitious, and I think it is an opportunity for us,” he said. “I don’t think that Banijay gets enough credit for the scripted strength that it already has.”
He added, “I think the U.S. is a new opportunity for us in the scripted space.”
Bassetti cautioned, however, that the company has no intention of abandoning its disciplined approach to production, particularly when it comes to expensive feature films.
“We are not taking big risks for a $200 million movie,” he said.
He also suggested that streaming platforms should consider giving successful producers a greater share of the financial rewards from hit programming, including backend participation and additional rights, rather than relying exclusively on upfront production fees.
The executives said the merger has been well received by major streaming platforms, which increasingly value the ability of large production partners to deliver quality programming consistently across multiple territories.
“The media business is hard, right? You want to know who you can rely on,” Zucker said. “And when you come to Banijay, you know you can rely on Banijay.”
Bassetti said the emergence of additional major entertainment and streaming players, including the newly enlarged Skydance, should create more opportunities for independent producers by increasing competition for programming.
Zucker also indicated that Banijay could pursue additional acquisitions, although he emphasized the company’s significant opportunities for organic growth.
“It’s hard to stay small and independent these days,” he said. “So a lot of people come to us and want to be part of something bigger.”
But he stressed that financial reompany
“There is a lot of capital in the world that’s available, not enough great ideas and great leadership,” Zucker said. “The capital is the easy part. It’s the leadership and the ideas that really matter.”
As for what comes next, both executives emphasized that the company intends to continue investing in its core production business while pursuing opportunities in emerging entertainment sectors.
“We’re going to continue to invest across each of them,” Zucker said. “We really want to grow in each of those areas.”
And although Banijay already holds a dominant position in the global production business, Zucker suggested the company is far from finished expanding.
“There’s nothing we feel we need,” he said. “And everything is possible.”
