Fremantle Acquires Asacha Media Group
Fremantle is acquiring the Asacha Media Group in Paris, which comprises eight award-winning labels in France, Italy and the U.K. The deal follows the acquisition of an 80 percent majority stake in Beach House Pictures in Singapore. “With the acquisitions of Asacha Media Group and Beach House Pictures, Fremantle is well on track to reach its €3 billion revenue target,” says Thomas Rabe, CEO of RTL Group.
RTL Group subsidiary Fremantle is acquiring Asacha Media Group, a European production group based in Paris. The sellers are the company’s founders and managers and the investment company Oaktree Capital Management. Asacha owns majority shares in a total of eight award-winning production companies in France, Italy and the U.K., which produce series, films, shows, reality formats and documentaries for a wide range of clients. Under the terms of the agreement, Fremantle has the option to acquire the outstanding shares in the eight production companies over the next few years. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2024.
The acquisition of Asacha Media Group follows Fremantle’s recent acquisition of an 80-percent majority stake in the Singapore-based production company Beach House Pictures, which closed on February 8. Under the agreement, Fremantle has the option to fully acquire Beach House after 2027. For both acquisitions combined, RTL Group will invest over €200 million.
They are part of Fremantle’s boost plan to reach €3 billion in full-year revenue by 2025. RTL Group is investing in Fremantle across all three content pillars: entertainment, drama and film, and documentaries. In total, Fremantle has acquired 13 companies in the past three years, including Lux Vide, This is Nice Group, Eureka, Element Pictures, Wildstar Films and 72 Films.
“The acquisitions of Asacha Media Group and Beach House Pictures are part of Fremantle’s boost plan: to invest in and grow premium production companies around the world and to work with world-class talent,” commented RTL Group CEO Thomas Rabe. “With the acquisitions, Fremantle is well on track to reach its €3 billion revenue target, effectively doubling the global video production business within five years.
Over the past years, Fremantle has significantly grown its portfolio across all genres, with acquisitions in the Nordics, the UK, Italy, the US and Australia. Asacha Media Group complements Fremantle’s European footprint with eight distinctive labels, while Beach House Pictures strengthens Fremantle’s position in Asia – a growth region within its strategic boost plan.”
Asacha was founded in 2020 by Gaspard de Chavagnac, Marc-Antoine d’Halluin and Marina Williams. Within the group, the labels Kabo, Mintee, Picomedia and Red Planet focus on scripted series, while Stand by Me, Arrow and WAG focus on unscripted formats and Srab on films. Asacha’s most successful productions include “Death in Paradise” (Red Planet Pictures) for BBC One, “Mare Fuori” (Picomedia) for Netflix, and “Scènes de Ménages” (Kabo Family) for M6. Beach House Pictures operates in Japan, Korea and China as well as in the U.S., U.K., and Europe, and focuses on unscripted formats such as “Mind Your Manners” for Netflix, documentary series such as “Evolve” for Amazon Prime, and franchises such as “Masterchef Singapore” and “Ice Cold: Murder, Coffee and Jessica Wongso” for Netflix Indonesia.
Asacha will continue to be led by Gaspard de Chavagnac, the Group’s co-founder and CEO. He will report to Andrea Scrosati, Group COO and CEO Continental Europe at Fremantle. Gaspard de Chavagnac will continue to be supported by Marina Williams as Asacha’s Chief Content Officer. The Asacha labels in France, Italy and the U.K. will continue to report to Gaspard de Chavagnac. “Fremantle is proud to be investing and partnering with the very best international creative talent,” said Andrea Scrosati, Group COO and CEO Continental Europe at Fremantle. “Gaspard de Chavagnac, Marina Williams, and Marc-Antoine d’Halluin and the incredible producers and talents that have created Asacha certainly fall into this category, and we are delighted they have chosen to join the Fremantle family. They have built an impressive portfolio of market-leading labels, each of which perfectly complements our existing businesses in each of their markets. This strategic deal underlines both companies’ ambitious growth targets, and we look forward to collaborating with their immensely talented creatives across the group.”
