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CANNES — France‘s M6 has become the first international broadcaster to commission red-hot Israeli entertainment format Rising Star, securing a deal for a local version from Keshet International.
Rising Star, which premiered to record ratings last month in Israel, is attracting attention because of its use of social media. The show, a singing competition akin to American Idol, allows viewers to vote during a singer’s live performance via a mobile app, with the results recorded in real time and impacting the outcome of the show.
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Produced by Tedy Productions for Keshet Broadcasting in Israel, Rising Star debuted to a massive 49.4 percent share on Keshet’s Channel 2. Social media participation has also been impressive, with more than 2.3 million votes via the Rising Star app (from a total Israeli population of just under 8 million). The conversion rate (the percentage of total viewers using the show’s second screen app) has been more than 30 percent, 10 times the value for previous shows on Israeli TV.
Rising Star is attracting a lot of attention from U.S. buyers as well, but many are skeptical whether the live voting format can be transposed onto a nation, like the U.S., with multiple time zones.
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