Syco Entertainment is a British media entertainment company, headquartered in London, founded and owned by British entrepreneur and record executive Simon Cowell. The company focuses on TV production. The company was formed in 2005 through

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainmen ...

entering a joint venture by purchasing Cowell's shares of his record label

S Records Syco Music is a defunct division of Syco Entertainment founded by British entrepreneur and record executive Simon Cowell. Originally founded as S Records, the label launched while Cowell was still employed by BMG, the label oversaw music rele ...

and television company Syco Television. In 2009, Sony and Cowell entered a joint venture agreement that covered the joint ownership of Syco's television formats, which include the '' Got Talent'' and '' The X Factor'' franchises. Until 2020, the company operated high profile television and music projects with Sony Music labels around the world and television production company

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

. It employs a staff of more than 50 in offices in London and Los Angeles, and manages a string of high-profile television and music brands through partnerships with the label Sony Music and the television production company. Retail billionaire Sir

Philip Green Sir Philip Nigel Ross Green (born 15 March 1952) is a British businessman who was the chairman of the retail company the Arcadia Group. He owned the high street clothing retailers Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge from 2002 to 2020. As ...

, a close friend of Cowell, served as an advisor to the company until 2018. Through its divisions: Music, Film and TV, Syco has produced the ''Got Talent'' and ''The X Factor'' franchises which encompassed local versions in numerous countries and have launched the careers of One Direction, Leona Lewis, Little Mix, Susan Boyle and Fifth Harmony amongst others. Syco have also been instrumental in the careers of artists not originating from its franchises, including Il Divo and Westlife. It has also produced films such as '' One Direction: This Is Us'' (2013) and ''The X Factor'' parody musical, '' I Can't Sing!'' (2014). In July 2020, Cowell bought Sony Music's stake in Syco Entertainment, with exception for

Syco Music Syco Music is a defunct division of Syco Entertainment founded by British entrepreneur and record executive Simon Cowell. Originally founded as S Records, the label launched while Cowell was still employed by BMG, the label oversaw music rele ...

. The record label and its artists and back catalogue were retained by Sony Music and subsequently absorbed. TV rights and assets were transferred over to the newly created Syco Entertainment Ltd, which is owned 100% by Cowell.

Formation and history

Cowell founded

whilst employed by

BMG BMG may refer to: Organizations * Music publishing companies: ** Bertelsmann Music Group, a 1987–2008 division of Bertelsmann that was purchased by Sony on October 1, 2008 *** Sony BMG, a 2004–2008 joint venture of Bertelsmann and Sony that wa ...

back in 2004. The label oversaw music by Robson & Jerome, Five, Westlife and Teletubbies. A year later, BMG, now named

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyou ...

, bought Cowell's share in both Syco Music and Syco Television. In 2010, a new company was formed as a 50/50 partnership between Cowell and Sony Music, keeping the name Syco but titled as Syco Entertainment. In 2015, it was announced that the Syco Entertainment joint venture would be extended for a further 6 years. Retail Billionaire Sir

, a close friend of Cowell, served as an advisor to the company until 2018. It was initially divided into three units:

, Syco TV and Syco Film. A few years later in July 2020, it was announced that Cowell had agreed to buy out Sony Music's stake in the company, with Sony Music retaining the company's artist roster and catalogue.

Operations

Syco's television operations were founded originally as Sycos TV, primarily operating in the UK and US with key franchises '' The X Factor'' and '' Got Talent''. It was launched by Simon Cowell in 2003. Following Cowell's purchase of

's stake in the business in 2020, Cowell went on to expand his existing TV arrangements with NBCUniversal in 2021. The new deal will see a range of non-scripted series for the streaming service Peacock developed (though this does not include ''Walk the Line''). As part of the deal, Cowell will appear as a judge on '' AGT: Extreme'', a spin-off from '' America's Got Talent''.

''The X Factor''

The X Factor, which launched in September 2004, was one of the most popular television shows in the UK. Syco and Fremantle Media launched '' The X Factor USA'' in September 2011, which averaged 12 million viewers and a 4.0 rating in the adults 18–49 demographic in its first season, leading FOX to nightly wins on Wednesdays and Thursdays and topping all other fall season reality competition. Internationally, ''The X Factor'' is produced individually in 41 countries including major markets like

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, the

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Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

and Australia. Additionally, ''The X Factor USA'' is screened in 166 countries around the world.

''Got Talent''

'' Britain's Got Talent'' consistently tops UK ratings when it is broadcast in April, May and June. In 2009, nearly 20 million people (approximately one third of the UK population) tuned into the series 3 final to see Diversity crowned winners. '' America's Got Talent'' matched a series high 4.6 rating amongst adults 18–49 in the summer of 2011 for its sixth season. Since launching in 2006, ''America's Got Talent'' has consistently been the most watched show of the summer in the US and topped the ratings in the key adults 18–49 demographic.

Other projects

Syco produces other shows outside its key brands. In 2011, ITV series '' Red or Black?'' was met with mixed reaction. Syco were also behind '' American Inventor'' which ran for two seasons on ABC and the unsuccessful '' Celebrity Duets'' on Fox. In addition to its major formats, Syco also produces entertainment specials. This includes '' I Dreamed a Dream: The Susan Boyle Story'', which broke ratings records in the US on TV Guide network and scored 10 million viewers on ITV in the UK. In 2013, Syco and Optomen launched ITV series '' Food Glorious Food'', which aired on Wednesday evenings in the UK. Syco Entertainment were the executive producers of the film ''One Direction: This Is Us'' from director Morgan Spurlock, which follows the life of pop sensations One Direction. The band had come third in the 2010 UK ''X Factor'' series, before being signed to Syco. In January 2013, Syco set up a new London-based television division called Over The Top Productions. This production company was run by Syco's Global Head of Television, Nigel Hall, and would be responsible for formats such as ITV's '' Rolling In It''. In July 2016, The Investigator: A British Crime Story was a co-production between Syco & ITV which was broadcast for four consecutive weeks on ITV at 9pm. The series was inspired by Simons Cowell’s interest in the crime series Making a Murder, and the Jinx. The Investigator: A British Crime Story was broadcast globally via Netflix until 21st August 2021. The series looked in to the murder of Carole Packman who disappeared from her family home in Bournemouth in June 1985. Carole’s husband, Russell Causley was convicted of her murder in 1996 and again in 2004 following a successful appeal.

You Generation

In March 2013, Syco in partnership with YouTube, launched The You Generation channel which is listed as the 'world's first global audition'. In May 2014, Syco and

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and inclu ...

announced an upcoming TV show called ''La Banda'' which will focus on searching contestants from Hispanic America to find the "ultimate Latino boy band" with the winner receiving a recording contract for Sony Music Latin and Syco.

''I Can't Sing!''

2014 saw Syco launch '' I Can't Sing!'', a parody musical based on ''The X Factor''. After technical issues and poor critical reception, the show was pulled from the

West End of London The West End of London (commonly referred to as the West End) is a district of Central London, west of the City of London and north of the River Thames, in which many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buil ...

less than two months after it opened. Cowell later said of the venture that occasionally things didn't work out and that they had been too ambitious trying to launch a new show in the West End.

Shows produced

Current productions

* '' America's Got Talent'' (2006–present) * '' Britain's Got Talent'' (2007–present)

Former productions

* '' America's Got Talent: The Champions'' (2019–2020) * '' American Inventor'' (2006–2007) * '' Britain's Got More Talent'' (2007–2019) * '' Britain's Got Talent: The Champions'' (2019) * '' Celebrity Duets'' (2006) * '' Food Glorious Food'' (2013) * '' Grease is the Word'' (2007) * '' I Dreamed a Dream: The Susan Boyle Story'' (2009) * ''

La Banda La Banda is a city in the province of Santiago del Estero, Argentina. It has about 95,000 inhabitants as per the , making it the second largest in the province. It is the head town of the Banda Department. La Banda is located only 8 km awa ...

'' (2015–2016) * ''Planet's Got Talent'' (2015–2016) * '' Red or Black?'' (2011–2012) * '' That Dog Can Dance'' (2012) * '' The Greatest Dancer'' (2019–2020) * '' The X Factor'' (2004–2018) * '' The Xtra Factor'' (also called ''The Xtra Factor Live'') (2004–2016) * '' The X Factor: Battle of the Stars'' (2006) *'' The X Factor: Celebrity'' (2019) * '' The X Factor: The Band'' (2019) * '' The You Generation'' (2013–2014) * '' Walk the Line'' (2021) * ''Your Song'' (2017)

Screen and stage

* '' I Can't Sing! The X Factor Musical'' (2014) * '' One Direction: This Is Us'' (2013)

References

External links

Syco TV
at

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{{Authority control British companies established in 2003 Companies based in Los Angeles Companies based in London Film production companies of the United Kingdom Mass media companies of the United Kingdom Publishing companies based in London Publishing companies established in 2003 Talent agencies Television production companies of the United Kingdom Former Sony subsidiaries