MIPTV Cannes to close, with London move next year

MIPTV 2023 opening party

MIPTV organiser RX France is to shut down the 60-year-old programming market and launch MIP London in 2025 at The Savoy Hotel to coincide with the existing London TV Screenings series of events

MIP London will run from 24-27 February – alongside the London TV Screenings, which takes place next year 24-28 February – and has taken space at The Savoy and the nearby IET London.

The new event, which will have a “pre-opening” on Sunday 23 February, is being targeted largely at European distributors looking for screening and networking space, both of which are in short supply during the London TV Screenings week following its exponential growth over recent years.

MIP London will be free to attend for buyers, who will now become even more in demand during the already busy week’s schedule, which has to date been organised by London TV Screenings founders Banijay, Fremantle, All3Media International and ITV Studios.

RX said the MIP London would be a “complementary” to existing events and would eschew MIPTV’s market approach with a variety of “tailored, scalable options to showcase and network in one convenient spot.”

TBI understands RX staff who have been working on MIPTV will shift to focus on MIP London, with no job losses in the offing, while organisers have also been consulting with companies involved with London TV Screenings – there were 29 distributors formally involved with the 2024 edition.

Lucy Smith, RX France’s entertainment chief, said MIP London would “not only alleviate a busy events calendar but will provide an additional entry point for international companies to gather in London at the same time.”

“We have consulted with many of those already hosting events in London as well as with international companies looking to do so. Our vision is a market that complements, not competes with, the established screenings programme, that provides further options for the widest range of international distributors, studios and buyers to take part and can bring even more business to London in February for the benefit of all.”

MIPTV 2024 to be its last

The move means April’s MIPTV will be its last and comes after the market, which celebrated its 60th birthday in 2023, has seen dwindling numbers as events including Series Mania, Content London and The London TV Screenings grabbed more attention and attendees. RX’s flagship TV market, MIPCOM, will remain in Cannes.

Attention will now turn to BBC Studios, which is yet to confirm its dates for its annual Showcase. It was that event, previously held in Liverpool, that attracted hundreds of buyers to the UK and sparked the beginnings of London TV Screenings, with other distributors looking to set informal meetings with the numerous buyers heading to the country.

The first formally branded and co-ordinated London TV Screenings took place in 2022 (after 2021’s online version), following years of distributors holding smaller events as they grabbed buyers headed to BBCS’s Showcase event.

Since then, largely as a cooperative venture led by ITVS, All3Media International, Fremantle and Banijay, it has surged in popularity with in excess of 750 buyers in 2024. US trade Deadline broke the MIP London news.