Tuesday round-up: Latest news, deals & hires

Seb Cardwell to leave Paramount’s 5

Sebastian Cardwell, deputy chief content officer and head of drama at 5 in the UK,  is stepping down after well over a decade with the Paramount-owned broadcaster.  

Cardwell, who was the architect of the broadcaster’s drama revolution, will leave at the end of the year in order to see through its current slate. His key credits include All Creatures Great and Small, Ellis, The Teacher, Cold Call, The Hardacres and The Madame Blanc Mysteries,  

He joined the network in 2011 and took on a variety of roles including controller of digital channels before being appointed head of drama in 2019 and spearheading the broadcaster’s move into the genre.  

Its scripted slate has grown from just eight hours in 2018 to more than 100 hours this year, and Cardwell and his colleague Paul Testar have also ordered a number of titles for Paramount+, including The Crow Girl, A Gentleman In Moscow, The Flatshare and upcoming titles Treasure Island and The Day. It is understood that Cardwell took the decision to leave the broadcaster, and his successor as head of drama at 5 is expected to be named imminently, possibly next week. Read more

Samsung TV Plus agrees Wedotv deal in India

Wedotv has launched four of its FAST channels in india following a deal with Samsung Smart TV.

The channels are: Wedotv Big Stories (in partnership with BIG Media); wedotv Cars (created with Motorvision); wedotv Movies; and wedotv Sports will all be rolled out in the country.

Wedotv has now introduced FAST channels on Samsung TV Plus across 13 territories, including recent launches in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Australia and New Zealand.