All3Media acquires Zoo Prods

Move latest in recent reality deals

By MICHAEL SCHNEIDER

Zoo Prods. is partnered with Mark Burnett on Fox gamer 'Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?'

Indie U.K. TV group All3Media has acquired U.S.-based Zoo Prods., which is partnered with Mark Burnett on "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?"

Acquisition reps the latest in a flurry of recent deals in the nonscripted production arena. Burnett himself is close to selling his company in a blockbuster deal to IMG, while "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" exec producer Tom Forman formed a new company with Relativity earlier this week.

"America is viewed as a market that hasn't reached saturation," said one production company exec. "A lot of foreign entities are looking to take advantage of that. The weak dollar also makes these companies attractive not just to the British but to everyone that uses the Euro. And the saturation of European markets is forcing many international companies to look at the U.S."

All3Media itself is rumored to be in play, with reports last month that NBC Universal may be interested in taking over the company.

Barry Poznick and John Stevens founded Zoo in 1994 and early on produced "The Blame Game" and "Spring Break" for MTV.

Beyond "5th Grader," which continues to perform well for Fox, Zoo's other projects include TruTV's "Speeders." Company also produced four seasons of "Girls Behaving Badly" for Oxygen and has the MTV series "Busted" in the works.

All3Media CEO Steve Morrison said he's been looking to extend the company's footprint in the U.S.

"This adds a dynamic American flavor to All3Media and helps cement the growth of our production companies in the U.S.," Morrison said. "This acquisition complements wonderfully the business we already have in this important market."

All3Media will now add Zoo Prods. to its growing stable of companies producing fare in the U.S. Those shingles include Company Pictures (HBO's "Generation Kill"), Maverick Television ("How to Look Good Naked"), Lion Television ("History Detectives," "Cash Cab") and Objective Prods. (U.K.'s "Peep Show").

Lion's "Cash Cab" just won a Daytime Emmy for gameshow last week.

"All3Media has a great philosophy -- allowing its subsidiaries to maintain creative independence while providing the resources of an international company," Poznick said.