MIPTV 2012: Elisabeth Murdoch’s Shine Group, ITV Studios Global Entertainment Ink Separate Chinese Output Deals

4:22 AM PDT 4/3/2012 by Stuart Kemp

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Shanghai Media Group to produce Shine’s “Masterchef” format while ITV sales arm sells VOD rights for “Titanic” to China internet giant JOY.CN.

LONDON – China’s burgeoning appetite for Western programming shows no sign of abating with Elisabeth Murdoch’s Shine Group and ITV Studios Global Entertainment both striking high profile albeit very different deals for the territory.

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Shine sealed what it described as a landmark deal to produce its global reality format MasterChef in China.

The deal, reached with Shanghai Media Group, will see MasterChef produced by, and aired on, SMG’s Dragon TV.

The deal was carved out by Shine Network president Mark Fennessy and Shine International director Betty Chen.

And it’s not just Western reality China is showing an appetite for with ITV Global Studios Entertainment inking an agreement with JOY.CN, one of China’s largest content websites for a slew of British drama.

The multiyear output deal will see programs such as ITV Studios’ big budget co-production Titanic written by Julian Fellowes and U.S. network drama Prime Suspect, starring Maria Bello made available via video on demand.

ITV Studios Global Entertainment svp, Asia Pacific Augustus Dulgaro said: “Many audiences in China are now watching more content online than they do via traditional television and with the appetitie for British and U.S. programs continuing to grow, this deal is a very natural step for us in the region.”

Chinese webwatchers will also be offered award-winning drama Appropriate Adult, ITV Studios’ The Jury, Ruby Television’s Case Histories and long-running detective shows A Touch of Frost.