Night Train Media, the German production and investment group led by Herbert L. Kloiber, has acquired the Swedish sales and distribution arm Eccho Rights of Korean media giant CJ ENM, Night Train reported on Thursday.
Based in Stockholm, with offices in Istanbul, London, Madrid and Seoul, Eccho Rights is a leader in the international scripted television business and was one of the first companies to see the potential of non-English language drama, particularly from Scandinavia. . Turkey and South Korea. The group licenses approximately 17,000 hours of drama annually and operates direct-to-consumer digital channels that reach more than 10 million subscribers worldwide. Eccho Rights series includes Viaplay’s Swedish hit triplechannel five drama compulsion and the South Korean film trilogy a midnight thriller. The group is also an international distributor village servantUkrainian comedy series that launched the real-life political career of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Seoul-based CJ ENM acquired a majority stake in Eccho Rights in 2018, a stake that has now been sold to Night Train.
Eccho Rights will continue to operate as a separate entity within the Night Train Media Group, the companies said. Fredrik af Malmborg will remain CEO with a significant stake in Eccho Rights. Kloiber will serve as chairman of the board of Eccho Rights. Handan Özkubat will continue as director of Turkish drama and digital operations, with Adam Bart as director of co-production, development and acquisitions at Eccho Right.
“We share the same vision for the future of television production and distribution, and with the support of Night Train Media, Eccho Rights will strengthen its position as a partner for creators looking to maintain independence in an increasingly consolidated industry.” – said in the statement from Fredrik af Malmborg.
Eccho Rights co-founder Nikola Soderlund is retiring after 20 years at the Eccho/Sparks Network.
“We are impressed with the growth of Eccho Rights, not only in sales of its popular drama series worldwide, but also in its strategic vision,” Kloiber said in a statement. Eccho’s main business areas are complementary and synergistic with those of NTM. Combining our strengths couldn’t come at a better time, as even global streamers increasingly license content in select territories. “
Night Train is backed by private equity firm Serafin Group and last year acquired a majority stake in Paul Heaney’s unscripted distribution company BossaNova. Night Train noted that in addition to working with Eccho Rights, it will continue to co-finance with outside distributors.
Source: Hollywood Reporter
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