The unscripted market might be beginning to settle after a chaotic few years, but the over-reliance on recommissions needs to end, says Sony Pictures Television Nonfiction boss Eli Holzman.
“We as an industry neglect new ideas at our peril,” said SPT Nonfiction’s President speaking at Content London in the UK. “Every big hit we love today was once a risk for someone. It was a gamble and you have to do that.”
Holzman said the SPT’s biggest hits such as Shark Tank and 90 Day Fiance were being renewed “at a clip,” but that the same appetite didn’t exist for new shows. He broke down how the trend could impact Sony’s unscripted business model, using an example of when SPT was a “100-series” business (it’s slightly less these days).
“If you looked at those 100 series, 50 were season ones and we didn’t expect most of those to come back. In non-fiction, you’re in profit in season one and that that churn is important source of profit for us. We expect those to be replaced by more season ones — that’s 50% of pur business in terms of a volume standpoint. Of the 50, a small subset get renewed and an even smaller subset become our hits. That’s what has declined.”
Watch on Deadline
Holzman said “every big hit we love today was once a risk for someone, adding: “We as an industry neglect new ideas at our peril.”
He added that the business “is fuelled by the next big idea,” but have currently the split between recommissions and new ideas had morphed from around a 50-50 split to 70-30 in favor of returners. “It’s critical we get back to 50-50,” he said.
Holzman became President of SPT’s Unscripted arm after Sony acquired his business, Industrial Media, for $350M in 2022. SPT’s slate includes American Idol, 90 Day Fiancé, Indian Matchmaking, Selena+Chef and So You Think You Can Dance, Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!.