Business 4 min read By Lauren Baxter
Banijay CEO Urges European Producers to Demand Better Terms From Hollywood Studios and Streamers
Marco Bassetti, CEO of Banijay Entertainment, told a Rome industry gathering that European producers must hold firm in negotiations with U.S. studios and streamers, arguing that creativity deserves tangible rewards.
European producers should stand their ground when negotiating terms of trade with U.S. studios and streamers, Marco Bassetti, CEO of Banijay Entertainment, said during a fireside chat at the MIA market in Rome. Bassetti, who leads the London-based company described as the world’s largest independent studio, argued that the balance of power in international production deals needs to shift toward the creators who generate the intellectual property.
Speaking on a panel titled «What does it mean today to be a ‘European champion’ in an increasingly global market,» Bassetti framed the issue as a question of fair value. His core message was that studios and streamers should provide «rewards for creativity» — a phrase that captures his push for European producers to secure a larger share of the upside when their shows become global hits. The setting was notable: the MIA market is a key gathering for the international content industry, drawing executives from across Europe and beyond to discuss co-production, distribution and financing.
Banijay’s scale gives Bassetti’s argument particular weight. As the largest independent studio outside the major Hollywood conglomerates, the company produces and distributes formats and scripted content across numerous European territories. That footprint means its deals with U.S. buyers serve as a template for smaller producers who often lack the leverage to negotiate favorable terms on their own. Bassetti’s call effectively urges the European production sector to act collectively — or at least strategically — when confronting the concentrated buying power of American studios and streaming platforms.
The timing reflects a broader anxiety in the European production community. Streaming platforms have become essential buyers of local-language content, but producers have complained that the terms of those deals often strip them of long-term rights and back-end participation. Bassetti’s remarks suggest that European companies should not accept those conditions as inevitable, especially as demand for international content remains strong. The MIA market, held annually in Rome, has become a venue for exactly this kind of debate, bringing together producers, broadcasters and platform executives to hash out the commercial realities of a globalized television business.
Bassetti’s intervention also lands as European regulators and industry groups continue to debate how to strengthen the continent’s audiovisual sector. The idea of building «European champions» — companies large enough to compete with U.S. giants on their own terms — has gained traction in policy circles. For Bassetti, that ambition is inseparable from the negotiating table: without better terms of trade, European producers risk remaining suppliers of talent and ideas while others capture the long-term value. His message to the room in Rome was clear: the creativity is European, and the rewards should be too.
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