CJ ENM expands global reach with entertainment IP exports

South Korean entertainment giant CJ ENM Co. is broadening its international reach, exporting its widely popular entertainment show intellectual properties (IP) which include content related to dating, brain games, and survival.

CJ ENM on Friday announced that its hit IP “The Genius” is exported to the UK’s biggest private broadcaster ITV. The UK version of this show will be produced by Remarkable Entertainment, a unit under Banijay, a leading global broadcast video content production company. It will be aired in 2024.

This is the CJ ENM’s first format export to the UK’s private broadcaster. In 2021, the company exported a format of its music entertainment show “I Can See Your Voice” to the nation’s public broadcaster BBC. This show was popular and aired in season two. 

"The Genius" is a brain survival show featuring celebrities. It premiered in 2013 and ran through season four. The format was also exported to the Netherlands, where it aired for three seasons on Dutch public broadcaster NPO3.

Banijay's Format Purchase Manager Helen Greatorex lavished praise on the show, calling it a mirror to the current times. She elaborated on its theme of strategic thinking, knowledge, and the art of persuasion that participants employ to tackle challenges. "Given the global nod to CJ ENM's format, this UK version is anticipated to resonate well with the audience," she added.

CJ ENM's influence isn't just confined to Europe. The Original program of TVING "EXchange" found its way to Japan, reincarnated as "Love Transit", and was made available globally on Amazon Prime Video in June this year. 

The top-tier entertainment show on tvN "Amazing Saturday" is remade into a Vietnamese version. It will be aired on Vietnam's national broadcaster VTV3 in October.

"Korean entertainment program contents are remade locally to reach a global audience across cultural and language barriers by format export," SVP of CJ ENM Content Business Seo Jang-ho said. "As global viewers become more familiar with K-entertainment formats, the barriers to directly entering content will decrease, and the scope for overseas expansion of K-content is expected to widen."

Write to Jin-Eun Jeong at jeong@hankyung.com