Barclays has launched a £100 million fund to help TV production companies compete for orders from video-streaming platforms such as Netflix and Amazon. The bank has been considering how it could improve the types of funding provided to better support its TV clients, it said in a statement. Conventional TV production loans are repaid as the content is delivered with the broadcaster paying the production company and funder simultaneously, it said. It added that it has adapted its loan structures to more closely match the funding requirements of companies working with SVOD distributors. The product allows these companies to borrow money over a longer period, enabling them to use the funds to develop more ideas and programs, which in turn supports more sustained employment and helps them to grow more quickly. One of the first companies to benefit from the new fund is Roughcut Television, which has produced comedy shows such as BAFTA-nominated ‘Cuckoo’, ‘Trollied’ and ‘People Just Do Nothing’.
