The SASUKE family of sports entertainment programs from TBS has expanded to France and Germany, and both locally produced programs are off to a fantastic start!

Locally produced in France, “Ninja Warrior France” is broadcast on TF1, the largest private terrestrial broadcaster in the country. It is a two-hour regular weekly program that airs 8:55 to 11:00 p.m. in prime time on Fridays. Broadcast on July 8, the first episode earned the high market share of 26%, was seen by 5.02 million viewers, and easily won its time slot. (Station M6 came in second with a 16% market share and 3.31 million viewers.) In June, TF1 had logged an average market share of 20.4%; “Ninja Warrior France” therefore beat this average by more than 5%.

“Ninja Warrior Germany” is produced locally in Germany and is also broadcast on one of the largest private terrestrial broadcasters in the country: RTL. It is a regular weekly program that airs 8:15 to 11:00 p.m. in prime time on Saturdays. Broadcast on July 9, the first episode won its time slot and earned a market share of 17.4% in the core target demographic of males and females aged 14-49. In June, RTL had logged an average market share of 12% in this demographic. “Ninja Warrior Germany” beat this average by 5.4% for a 45% comparative increase in viewership and a stunning launch.

Produced with the support of TBS, both programs were the fruit of an agreement between TBS and Dentsu Inc. concluded in April 2014 in Cannes, France. This transaction gave Dentsu the right to manage the SASUKE format in most of Europe.

SASUKE (including the “Ninja Warrior” brand) has been aired in 165 countries and territories. Sales extend not only to countries in Asia, Europe, and North America, but also to the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. To date, there have been 12 local SASUKE productions outside Japan: in the US, Malaysia, Singapore, Sweden, Turkey, the UK, Vietnam, Denmark, China, Indonesia, France, and Germany.

■ About Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, Inc. (TBS)

With over 50 years of experience licensing programming overseas, Tokyo Broadcasting System Television, Inc. (TBS) has distributed programs of all genres – dramas, anime, documentaries, formats, movies – totaling several tens of thousands of hours of programming in over 160 countries worldwide and has firmly established its presence as a major content provider in the global arena. TBS is one of the most innovative broadcasters in creating variety formats, having licensed nearly 200 localized versions with several thousand episodes being produced including global hits like America’s Funniest Home Videos, Takeshi’s Castle/MXC, Sasuke/Ninja Warrior, etc. Looking ahead, TBS aims to further raise its profile overseas by expanding sales around the world of TBS hit shows and take advantage of new opportunities in the digital market place.