Sky bites into Znak & Jones

UK satcaster Sky has invested in fledgling indie Znak & Jones Productions, founded by former Zodiak USA CEO Natalka Znak and ex-Talpa Media USA boss Simon Jones.

Sky has acquired an equity stake in the company and will distribute all Znak & Jones’ finished programming through Sky Vision, the broadcaster’s international distribution business.

The prodco was launched earlier this year by Znak, a former controller of factual entertainment at ITV Studios where she executive produced I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, and Jones, who worked as CEO for Talpa Media USA and was chief operating officer for Syco Entertainment.

Znak left her CEO role at Zodiak USA in April last year after just over 12 months in charge.

The new venture has already secured a pilot deal with UK commercial broadcaster ITV for gameshow format Name That Tune and has projects in development with US cablenets AMC, CMT and Xbox.

Znak and Jones said the deal would allow their firm to remain “an independent, boutique operation able to best serve our respective broadcaster client needs and, at the same time, have a highly motivated international partner with a global distribution infrastructure necessary to drive a hit show.”

The investment is part of Sky’s strategy to increase its global content business spanning broadcasting, production and distribution and follows a similar investment in Bake Off-creator Love Productions.

It also has development deals with a number of production companies including Ugly Brother Studios in the US and Back2back Productions and Roughcut TV in the UK.

Earlier this year it agreed two co-development deals, including a two-year partnership with FX networks in the US to produce comedy programming.

In related news, Sky1 has ordered an 8×60′ fixed-rig entertainment series from Firecracker Films that embraces the UK’s love of pub quizzes.

Quiz Nights features four teams from different pubs across the country as they battle it out against each other answering identical quiz questions. It’s been commissioned by Sky1 controller Adam MacDonald and will transmit next year.