As Banjay Americas CEO Ben Samek says, his company’s deal with Phil Rosenthal really began to come together over lunch at Rosenthal’s popular Los Angeles restaurant Max & Helen’s.
“Everyone who walks in wants to go say hello to Phil. To see how excited people are [to meet] “He’s very engaging and connects with people on a different level,” Samek said. Hollywood Reporter. “It was like a three-hour lunch — great food, by the way — but it was a long lunch because there were always people coming to the table and interacting with it. It was just the celebrities who were neighborhood residents who loved the restaurant, so it really highlighted how much he loved it.”
The deal, unveiled on March 9, will see the Rosenthal food and travel chain launch Someone feeds an elephant It moved to YouTube in 2027 from its current home on Netflix (although previous seasons will continue to stream there). Banijay Americas and Banijay Right will also work with Everyone loves Raymond The content creator is developing and distributing other shows for a new edition of Rosenthal’s YouTube channel.
Move from Netflix to get a show like Someone feeds an elephant It’s unusual, but Samek said it grew out of Rosenthal’s desire to make the show as accessible as possible. “One of the things I’ve always loved,” Rosenthal said in announcing the deal Everyone loves Raymond is that it was free to watch everywhere. We are happy to announce this Someone feeds an elephant “We’ll be moving to YouTube, where our message of family, friendship, food, travel and laughter can reach the greatest number of people.”
“His comment to me was, ‘I would like my show to be free and reach as many people as possible,’” Samek said. THR. “YouTube is obviously a big part of this strategy. Our goal is to build the rest of the digital ecosystem and distribution system using its content, whether Someone feeds an elephant and other content that we intend to produce.
As for what that other content might look like, Samek said he and the Rosenthal team will be experimenting with new formats for Rosenthal’s long-running series. Naked lunch podcast (which he hosts with writer David Wilde) and discusses some ideas for short-form and long-form programming. Moving Someone feeds an elephant To a free platform also means it will likely run with ads, and Samek said sponsored content may exist among other elements on Rosenthal’s YouTube and social media channels.
YouTube is the largest single television platform in the United States, responsible for about 12 percent of all viewing in any given month. Banijay will also look to distribute Someone feeds an elephant On other free platforms, including AVOD and FAST services and channel lineups offered by connected TV manufacturers (similar to those found on Samsung, LG, and Sony). Samek believes that the latter outlets represent a growth area for the industry.
“If you look at the numbers [for AVOD services]”They continue to grow. So, as revenues grow, the audience’s expectations of being able to get more shows will continue to grow. I think it’s a category that, on both the connected TV and AVOD sides, will only grow in level of production value and revenue over time,” Samek said.
Samek also said he hopes the deal with Rosenthal and his company Lucky Bastards (which Rosenthal runs with his brother Richard) will show how using multiple platforms can benefit both audiences and creators.
“Our relationship with platforms, networks and channels has not changed,” he said. “This is a big part of what we do as a production company.” “For me, this is a new growth category where we can look to partner with talent. Whether it’s a show that came from another platform or not, I think there’s a way for us as a production company to embrace those creators and that talent at different levels, to be able to support and produce content and distribute it.”
