France wishes upon a ‘Rising Star’
Reality singing competition from Israeli TV giant Keshet is sold for local distribution in France
Israel’s hottest new singing competition has been sold for distribution in France.
Keshet International, the global distribution and production arm of Israeli media giant Keshet, closed a deal with French television for “Rising Star,” a new multi-format reality show that premiered last month on Israeli TV.
France’s M6 group acquired a local version of the format, just in time for Keshet’s major sales push for the program at MIPCOM, the industry’s annual content market event, in Cannes this week.
“Rising Star,” which debuted on Israel’s Channel 2 over Sukkot, takes the model perfected by “American Idol” and smashes the fourth wall between the viewing audience and all those crooning hopefuls on screen. Using a brand-new smartphone app that was developed by Keshet specifically for the show’s premiere, viewers at home can tune into the competition live and vote in real time, then watch their judgment play out before their eyes.
It has been a runaway success at home, grabbing nearly half of TV viewing audiences with each broadcast. Nearly 2.3 million votes have been tallied through the app, which has seen some 1.2 million downloads since the show’s first episode.
Keshet is no stranger to international success. Among its programming catalogue are such hit programs as “Prisoners of War,” which was remade in the US as “Homeland”; the beloved talent show “Master Class”; and the reality dating format “Girlfri3nds.”