In 2024, producers of shows and series for TV will raise prices for their services by at least 10%

In 2024, producers of shows and TV series will raise prices for their services by at least 10%, market participants expect. At the end of last year, a number of companies have already significantly increased their revenue – by 30-40% or more. Among the largest players, the record result was achieved by the Red Square studio with 4.7 billion rubles. Revenue growth was mainly due to work with online cinemas, which are increasing investments in the production of their own content.

“Kommersant” analyzed the financial indicators of the largest suppliers of shows and series for Russian television channels, published on the state information resource of accounting (financial) statements (BFO) in April. Partner of Channel One, the Red Square studio of Arkady Rotenberg in 2023 increased revenue by 43.3%, to 4.7 billion rubles. with a net profit of 56.2 million rubles. The company did not answer Kommersant.

WeiT Media (Russia 1, NTV, STS, TV-3) increased revenue by 31.8%, to 3.1 billion rubles. with a net profit of 181.7 million rubles. The general producer of the studio, Yulia Sumacheva, notes that last year new seasons of shows from among the leaders in television ratings, such as “Mask” (NTV), “Come on, all together!” were aired. (“Russia 1”). The company also worked on original series – “The Librarian” (REN TV, Wink), says a top manager: last year the studio released more than 30 “multi-genre projects”, now more than 50 are in development.

The revenue of VBD Group JSC, the parent company of the Yellow, Black & White studio (films projects for STS, Start, etc.), increased by 474%, to 4.4 billion rubles. with a net profit of 1.3 billion rubles. Over the past year, the company released at least two films that grossed 1 billion rubles at the box office, notes Kommersant’s interlocutor on the media market – “Slave 2” and “Cheburashka”: “The studio is also actively working with online cinemas and continues to expand the pool of customers ” Yellow, Black & White did not answer Kommersant.

For other content producers cooperating with TV channels, their figures, on the contrary, have decreased. Thus, the revenue of TNT’s partner, Solaris Promotion Production (SPP), decreased by 59.4%, to 2.7 billion rubles. The flagship project of SPP remains the show “Dom-2”. But the company is also involved in other areas: the TNT Music channel (in 2022, the bookmaker Fonbet became its owner), restaurants and Internet projects. Other TNT partners, such as Comedy Club Production and Good Story Media, last published their reports in 2021, according to SPARK-Interfax data. The companies did not answer Kommersant.

The indicators of Amedia Production (partners – Channel One, Russia 1, NTV and others) continued to fall: revenue decreased by 24.1%, to 597 million rubles, the net loss amounted to 166 million rubles. Amedia Production did not answer Kommersant. Media market participants believe that “the studio is unlikely to recover after the departure of its former shareholder,” Alexander Akopov. “This year, the studio’s successful projects included the film The Master and Margarita, but it is worth remembering that Mars Media Entertainment mainly took part in its development,” explains one of Kommersant’s interlocutors.

The main reason for the growth in the performance of a number of market participants is the expansion of the pool of customers, says a top manager of one of the production studios: “Many of them work with online cinemas, the cost of which projects significantly exceeds television budgets.” Thus, in the first quarter of last year alone, online cinemas increased costs for the production of their own content by 29%, to 54 billion rubles, due to increased costs (see “Kommersant” dated June 28, 2023). Now, according to Kommersant’s interlocutors in the film production market, studios have increased the cost of their services by another 10%.

Meanwhile, TV channels may not become the most reliable partners. For example, the accounts receivable of Red Square, according to the explanation to the statements, increased 2.1 times, to 4.3 million rubles: “85% is represented by the debt of buyers and customers, which 80% consists of the debt of JSC First channel””.

Yulia Yurasova