IP Adaptations Trends in October 2025:

This section provides a review of IP Adaptation deals announced in October, and  = specifically covers Book Adaptations and Game Adaptations.

Book Adaptations — Market Overview

• October reflected strong demand for established literary IP, with clear polarization across two clusters:
  – Children’s Fantasy Series (e.g., Dragon Girls, The School for Wicked Witches)
  – High-concept Horror and Thriller (e.g., Black Hole, A Head Full of Ghosts)
• Publishers and rights holders benefited from a global acquisition strategy, as buyers sourced non-English titles from Brazil, France, and Germany in addition to traditional US/UK markets.
• Netflix was the most active buyer, prioritizing high-prestige and globally recognizable properties:
  – Major literary classics: The Great Gatsby, The Count of Monte Cristo
  – Graphic novel acquisitions to anchor future franchise development
• Takeaway: Premium streamers continue to treat book-based IP as a shortcut to built-in audiences and long-form franchise potential.

Game Adaptations — Market Overview

• The October slate featured a diverse mix of IP categories migrating to screen, including video games, board games, and viral puzzle platforms.
• Netflix led commissioning activity, building a multi-format and multi-genre pipeline:
  – Catan → Film + Series franchise
  – Crash Bandicoot → Animated series
  – Clue → Animated series
• Secondary trend: nostalgic and niche IP gaining traction
  – Immaculate Grid adaptation (Religion of Sports)
  – Backyard Baseball (Playground Production)
• On the theatrical side, horror continues to leverage indie gaming communities:
  – Finding Frankie (13 Films) in development
• Warner Bros. sustained long-term franchise world-building
  – Expansion of the Mortal Kombat universe
• Takeaway: Game-based IP is evolving beyond single-title adaptations into multi-format, cross-platform franchise ecosystems, with nostalgia now joining AAA titles as a driver of commissioning.

Impact Deals – October 2025

High-Impact Deals are a spotlight on significant deals and partnerships shaping the global entertainment ecosystem. This section focuses on a range of unique signals Vitrina has picked up in the last month, including innovative financing, new distribution models, and cross-industry collaborations that offer a glimpse into the evolving business of content.

M&A Spotlight: Disney & Fubo Create a vMVPD Giant

In a major consolidation move, Disney (70%) and Fubo (30%) have formed a strategic Joint Venture to combine Hulu + Live TV with Fubo’s platform. This deal creates a powerful new entity with approximately 6 million subscribers, instantly securing the position of the #2 vMVPD in North America. The explicit goal of this combination is to achieve the scale necessary to compete head-to-head with YouTube TV, challenging its dominance in the live streaming TV market.

This transaction impacts the distribution supply chain by ending the fragmentation of the vMVPD market and establishing a clear Google vs. Disney duopoly. By creating a second “must-have” distributor, Disney significantly increases its leverage to reduce programming costs and dictate terms with upstream content suppliers. Furthermore, the consolidated scale creates a unified advertising platform capable of competing directly with Google for high-value live sports and linear ad revenue.

Strategic Partnership: Bell Media & Tubi Unite on Ads & Content 

In a comprehensive strategic pact, Bell Media becomes the  sole ad sales representative for Tubi in Canada, gaining access to a high-growth, younger audience -skewing inventory. In return, Bell will license its extensive Canadian library and FAST channels (e.g., CTV News, Corner Gas) to Tubi’s platform, effectively reaching “cord-never” audiences. Beyond distribution, the deal establishes a Global Co-Pro Pipeline, where both parties will co-fund original content, ensuring Bell’s productions have a built-in global partner from day one.

This partnership centralizes the Canadian advertising supply chain by consolidating premium video inventory, allowing advertisers to buy Tubi placements directly through their existing Bell Media accounts. On the production side, it creates a streamlined “New Content Pipeline” that solves a critical financing challenge: Canadian projects can now be funded and distributed simultaneously, securing a clear domestic window via Bell and an immediate global platform via Tubi.

Strategic Pivot: Inter Medya Enters the MicroDrama Market

Turkish company, Inter Medya is the new entrant in the vertical drama sector, and has adopted a hybrid content strategy that combines original production with third-party acquisitions to build a mobile-first catalog. This move is a calculated response to a high-growth market—forecast to reach $26 billion by 2030—positioning the company to compete with vertical-first disruptors like COL Group’s ReelShort.

This transforms Inter Medya from a pure distributor into a hybrid producer-distributor, adding a high-volume, “factory-like” production layer for mobile content. By adopting a B2B “Premium Supplier” model (avoiding D2C risk), the company establishes a dual-track sales pipeline: supplying continuous content to vertical apps while simultaneously upselling these short-form series to traditional broadcast and SVOD clients as tools to engage younger audiences on digital platforms.

Strategic Consolidation: Banijay Asia Secures Exclusive Talpa Rights

In a major consolidation play for the Asian unscripted market, Banijay Asia has entered an exclusive two-year strategic agreement with Talpa Studios, securing sole rights to represent, license, and produce Talpa’s entire format catalogue across India and Thailand. The deal covers all distribution windows—linear, SVOD, and AVOD—and grants Banijay control over global heavyweights like The Voice alongside rapidly growing new IPs such as The Floor and The Quiz with Balls.

This agreement establishes a Centralized Hub for unscripted formats in the region, effectively creating an “exclusive funnel” where all broadcasters and streamers must route through Banijay Asia to access Talpa’s IP. By folding Talpa’s assets into its existing portfolio (which already houses Endemol Shine), Banijay significantly strengthens its market leverage, offering platforms a simplified, single-vendor buying process while cementing its dominance in the high-value reality and game show sector.

How the Industry Uses Vitrina

Vitrina For VFX and Post Companies:
Vitrina is helping VFX companies like PhantomFX, Crafty Apes, and Light Iron discover and secure new Film & TV projects by tracking unreleased productions across development, production, and post. With deep intel on production companies, crew-heads, and decision-makers—plus direct contact details—VFX teams can reconnect with past collaborators, pitch at the right time, and expand their network of high-potential leads. It’s smart, targeted business development made easy.

Vitrina For Production Companies & Indies:
Vitrina empowers production companies and indie creators to find the right financing and commissioning partners—globally. From early-stage tracking of co-production-friendly projects to surfacing the latest deals and investment themes, Vitrina helps match projects with relevant financiers, commissioners, and collaborators. With up-to-date preferences and verified contacts, creators can focus on pitching to the right people—saving time and increasing chances of success.

Vitrina For Streamers:
Streamers use Vitrina to navigate the global content supply-chain with clarity. By tracking unreleased slates, mapping competitive activity, and identifying trending genres, formats, and territories, Vitrina equips content and strategy teams with the intel to make proactive moves—whether it’s preemptive pre-buys, co-production deals, or vendor discovery. With insights drawn from markets like LATAM, APAC, and Europe, Vitrina helps streamers stay ahead of content trends and competitors alike.