NYTVF Signs First 2013 Development Partners

NBC, History, CW Digital, Comedy Central all announced for next year's slate

By Andrea Morabito -- Broadcasting & Cable, 10/24/2012 1:49:01 PM

As the eighth annual New York Television Festival takes place this week, the organization has already signed its first four development partners for 2013.

The NYTVF announced Wednesday that Comedy Central and History will offer stand-alone development initiatives in comedy and non-scripted, respectively. NBC will offer the festival's first ever drama development competition and CW Digital has signed on as the first award sponsor for 2013's Independent Pilot Competition.

It is the first time CW Digital, History and NBC have partnered with NYTVF. Comedy Central is a returning partner.

"We'd really been looking to do a broadcast drama development initiative for some time," said NYTVF founder Terence Gray of the first-time partnership with NBC. He said the organization, who has worked with corporate siblings USA Network and Syfy in the past, approached NBC about a partnership, selling them on the fact that many independent film creators are now migrating to independent television.

NYTVF is offering 26 guaranteed development deals in 2012, up from 15 in 2011. Gray said he hoped the number of deals would grow again in 2013, though he said NYTVF is also looking beyond traditional development deals to second-screen initiatives, like this year's offer from Samsung that will award one $300,000 straight-to-series production commitment.