WHAT WERE THE TOP 100 TRAVELLING UNSCRIPTED TV FORMATS OF 2020?

Global media intelligence consultancy K7 Media has released its definitive list of the top 100 travelling unscripted TV formats. Identifying the shows that have had noteworthy success over the last 12 months, “Tracking the Giants: The Top 100 Travelling Formats” delivers the most sought-after insights into the unscripted format business around the world.

With much of the most interesting activity in the unscripted format market coming from this region, K7 Media has named South Korea as “Territory of the year”. The report notes that it has firmly established itself as a market heavyweight, with “Rising market of the year,” Vietnam, emerging as one of the most prolific importers of formats and the most active buyer in the region for the third year running.

According to the report, “Beat the Chasers,” from ITV Studios, is worthy of note where sales over the last year are concerned. The format is outperforming its parent show with four new sales compared to none for “The Chase” in its original form. That is why K7 Media named it “Spin-off of the year”.

Banijay’s “The Write-Offs” tackles the subject of adult literacy and follows eight participants aged 22 to 65, as they learn to read and write for the first time. The show not only received strong ratings and critical acclaim, it is also proving to be a potential format winner too, and for K7 it was the “Public service format of the year”.

“Tough as Nails” was considered the “Format to watch”. Although this new format from ViacomCBS Global Distribution has yet to make any sales, it has been optioned over 20 times making it one of the most popular new formats among production companies. A competitive reality show, it auditions manual and frontline workers from famously demanding jobs such as construction, fishing, agriculture and emergency services, and pits them against each other in job-themed challenges to see which worker is truly “tough as nails”.

The top performing genres of 2020 are not unexpected: quiz shows dominate, with 97 sales and options across multiple titles, with talent shows (70 sales and options), challenge-based game shows (56 sales and options) and factual entertainment dating shows (49 sales and options) following close behind.

Regarding companies in particular, four of the top 10 selling formats in 2020 come from Fremantle, including the two co-distributed formats “Masked Singer” and “I Can See Your Voice,” with 23 and seven sales, respectively. Fremantle also has “Game of Talents” (five sales) in the top rankings of the data, as well as “My Mom Cook Better Than Yours” (four sales). Therefore, K7 Media named Fremantle the “Distributor of the Year”.

“This last year has been unusual to say the least – with the TV industry unable to gather for its traditional events, but also benefiting from audiences that were compelled to stay at home, looking for a distraction from the real world. This may explain why we’ve seen the format market remaining resilient in the face of extraordinary problems, with sales and production options remaining steady,”  said Keri Lewis Brown, CEO & Founder at K7 Media.

“We also note from direct conversations with companies around the world, many have taken the last year to refocus on developing new formats. If this is true across the industry, it seems likely that the 2021 and 2022 markets will see an exciting number of fresh launches that could shake things up in ways we’ve not seen since the format boom of the early 2000s,”  Lewis Brown added.

To read the full report, click here.