UFA Launches Youtube Channels With Original Content

UFA is contributing two channels to the worldwide ‘Original Channels’ initiative announced yesterday by Youtube at the Mipcom TV fair in Cannes: “Heartbeat Berlin“ and “Trigger.” Youtube’s initiative involves launching more than 60 channels for original content in the U.S., U.K., France and Germany. The new channels are scheduled to go live at the end of 2012.

One of the UFA channels will be “Heartbeat Berlin,” an urban life channel from Berlin. The Youtube channel will report on trends in the German capital and entertain viewers with sophisticated zeitgeist-y topics. “Heartbeat Berlin” is an idea developed by UFA Lab, which will also produce the content, supported by Teamworx and Grundy Light Entertainment. Its Creative Producer is Kristian Costa-Zahn, UFA Lab’s Head of Creation.

UFA’s other original-content Youtube channel is “Trigger,” an innovative crime channel. It will offer expert analyses, the latest criminological theories, and exciting revelations. The Crime Channel gets viewers up close and personal with true crimes of our time. ‘Trigger’ is a co-operation between UFA Lab and UFA Fernsehproduktion, which as the producer of series including “SOKO 5113,” “Soko Leipzig” and “Ein starkes Team” is synonymous with great crime content expertise. Jörg Winger, producer of “SOKO Leipzig,” will oversee the crime channel. UFA plans to release more specific information on the program content of “Heartbeat Berlin” and “Trigger” when the two Youtube channels actually launch.

Jens-Uwe Bornemann, Vice President Digital Ventures & Innovation at UFA and head of the UFA Lab, says: “Our present original-programming channel activities on Youtube are the continuation of our long years of close collaboration with Youtube, which beyond many joint initiatives also includes the Youtube Creator Academy at the UFA Lab, a training proram for selected, talented Youtube stars. The development and production of the two Youtube channels and the formats that they will show corresponds precisely to our self-image as a lab for the creation of innovative content and production techniques for the new media, in combination with new business models. So we are very happy to once again be able to contribute our expertise and creativity to Youtube in this way.”

Youtube’s European programme initiative continues the video platform’s U.S. activities. Early this year, nearly 100 video channels with original content launched on Youtube’s U.S. platform. UFA’s parent company FremantleMedia contributed two channels here as well. “THNKR,” created and maintained by the Fremantle Media subsidiary “@radical.media” gives Youtube users access to remarkable people, stories and ideas that are changing the world for the better. Fremantle Media also launched “The Pet Collective,” a channel devoted to pet-related formats produced exclusively for Youtube. “The Pet Collective” is a co-operation between Fremantle Media North America, Fremantle Media Enterprises and Fremantle Media Cross Platforms (FMX).