TV's zero-sum game

Carter, previously chief operating officer at FremantleMedia and formerly at Endemol, explains the restructuring he has instigated across Shine’s Nordic operations; his thoughts on why the region has experienced another wave of consolidation; and warns that broadcasters are playing a “zero-sum game” by refusing to take more risks.

“In the face of declining audience shares, fragmentation, fighting to build mainstream audiences on television platforms, you might say that the obvious intellectual approach is to commission widely, diversely and courageously and see which of the things you offer to the public they go for,” says Carter.

“We find ourselves at a moment in time where the industry acts at its most conservative. It programmes what has been programmed and what has worked with ever-declining audience numbers in the belief that somehow, magically, that's going to attract people who aren't watching.”