– Mr. Gerkens, how did you accept your new post? You will manage the largest media group in our country, which in its scale and media, which gathers under one hat, has no analogue in Bulgaria.
– To accept the position in “Nova Broadcasting Group” was a logical step after the promotion of Nikolay Andreev to take over the management of Vivacom. Other factors were that I knew the company very well because of my involvement in the acquisition process, as well as my extensive experience in similar positions in Hungary, where I ran both private national television companies.
– You are taking over the management of Nova Broadcasting Group as its CEO, after being in charge of the media group for almost a year by its new owner, United Media. Do you already have a ready concept for the development of “Nova”, what will be your strategy?
– To be precise, I am responsible for the content and advertising sales of United Media, and Alexandra Subotić is the Chief Executive Officer. For the first time I take over the management of a company of similar quality – both in terms of finances and in terms of people. My goal is to continue the fantastic success story of Nova Broadcasting Group and try to contribute my experience in some areas, but I am sure that this will be an opportunity for me to learn from my great colleagues. We have very strong positions in the digital sphere and I would very much like to grow even further in this direction.
– What will be your priorities? Will you develop Bulgarian content with advantage and what, since the European commercial channels broadcast almost the same formats, slightly reworked according to local peculiarities?
– NOVA has a very balanced content and due to the lack of successful new international formats with sufficient scale, we have to rely more on local productions, which is possible only due to good quality and competitive prices. I have worked in markets where the price of such content is higher and you are forced to develop entertainment programs in the studio, such as games. I strongly believe in big weekend shows, as well as reality shows like “Games of Will” or Hell’s Kitchen, which are extremely successful. Nova Broadcasting Group continues to be among the biggest producers of Bulgarian series. Offering even more interesting new film projects to the Bulgarian audience, we will not back down from the positions we have won.
– What is the most important content for a polythematic TV station like Nova, in order for it to gain the trust of the audience, but also high ratings? What should be the ratio between news and current affairs and entertainment programs, for example?
– News is an essential part of our program schedule and I think that the level of news and information and entertainment programs we have at the moment is high. However, we understand that part of our audience wants constant access to news, which is why we decided to upgrade NOVA NEWS to N1 – a 24-hour specialized news channel with a large volume of original broadcasts, developed in close collaboration with CNN.
– How will you protect the freedom of Nova and its journalists? You have experience with similar battles in Hungary in 2014, when you were trying to protect RTL Klub from the intention of a progressive tax. Then you say that this is an attempt to get rid of one of the last free mass media that freely expresses their opinion.
– United Group maintains the highest standards regarding the independence of the news, as it has proven over the years, so this also applies to Bulgaria. And the situation in Hungary was completely absurd, and this tax was first reduced and then completely abolished.
– Will there be an exchange of content between Nova Broadcasting Group and the other channels of United Media, which are almost 50?
– Absolutely. We have already started exchanging know-how and ideas for formats between different channels. In addition, we will test some of our series – Bulgarian in Greece, for example. Now that we have enough experience at the regional level, our goal is to start high-budget international co-productions. For this purpose, we have recently created a special department that deals with production and distribution.
– Will there be personal changes in Nova, as well as in the group?
“I don’t think so.” The team is extremely professional and has incredible experience.
– Will you change the TV channels of Nova Broadcasting Group, will you acquire new ones?
– While working at TV2 in Hungary, I started 10 cable channels in one year, but the situation with Nova Broadcasting Group is different, as the portfolio of cable channels is already very strong and balanced. We recently launched our third sports channel, and NOVA NEWS will be updated next year. We will talk to our distribution partners and assess their interest in potential new channels. In addition, we will be more aggressive in new areas such as 4K and will carry out large-scale technological modernization after moving to our new building next year.
– What is your strategy for sports channels – you are a big fan of them in Hungary, what will they offer to viewers?
– Yes, I am a big fan of sports channels, having launched many of them in a number of territories. We have just renewed our rights to the English Premier League and added the German Bundesliga to our proposals. Although basketball in Bulgaria is not as popular as in Greece or the former Yugoslavia, we decided to expand in this area, acquiring the rights to broadcast matches from the International Basketball Association in the coming years, including the Bulgarian national team. We will also add niche content to the cable channels and try to hold big events such as the World and European Football Championships in Nova Broadcasting Group. We will soon announce important news in this direction.
Photo: NOVA / Krasena Angelova
You can read the whole interview with Dirk Gerkens here.
–
