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 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 of Ma ...

, 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 Little Mix are a British girl group, composed of group members Leigh-Anne Pinnock, Jade Thirlwall, and Perrie Edwards. Jesy Nelson was originally part of the group before she left in 2020. After becoming the first group to win the British ver ...

Susan Boyle Susan Magdalane Boyle (born 1 April 1961) is a Scottish singer. She rose to fame in 2009 after appearing as a contestant on the third series of ''Britain's Got Talent'', singing "I Dreamed a Dream" from '. Boyle's debut studio album, ''I D ...

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! ''I Can't Sing! The X Factor Musical'' was a musical comedy written by Harry Hill, and Steve Brown. Based on the TV series ''The X Factor'', the musical made its West End and world premiere in March 2014, at the London Palladium. Due to low tick ...

'' (2014). In July 2020, Cowell bought Sony Music's stake in Syco Entertainment, with exception for Syco Music. 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 Robson & Jerome are an English pop duo who were active in the mid-1990s, consisting of actors Robson Green and Jerome Flynn. They rose to prominence via the English television series ''Soldier Soldier''. The duo's musical catalogue was compose ...

Five 5 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 5, five or number 5 may also refer to: * AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era * 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era Literature * ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram * ''5'' (comics), an awa ...

, 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 buyout o ...

, 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 Music, 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 Sony Music Entertainment'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 ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is a televised American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distribut ...

''.

''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 France, the Netherlands, Indonesia and

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. 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. ''

'' 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 ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

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 "Food, Glorious Food", written by Lionel Bart, is the opening song from the 1960s West End and Broadway musical (and 1968 film) '' Oliver!'' Musical theme The song is sung from the point of view of the children of a workhouse for orphans where t ...

'', 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 ''Rolling In It'' is a British game show that has aired on ITV from 8 August 2020 to 18 December 2021 and is hosted by Stephen Mulhern. Gameplay Main game Three teams compete, each consisting of a celebrity and a civilian contestant. The cent ...

''. In July 2016, The Investigator: A British Crime Story was a co-production between Syco &

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

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 Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

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 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 Sony Music Entertainment US Latin LLC (often referred to as Sony Music Latin) is a record label owned by Sony Music. The label focuses on artists of Latin music. History In 1979, CBS Records (now Columbia Records) ended its partnership with C ...

and Syco.

''I Can't Sing!''

2014 saw Syco launch ''

'', 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 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

* ''

'' (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 ''Britain's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated to ''BGT'') is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global Got Talent, ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (c ...

'' (2007–2019) * '' Britain's Got Talent: The Champions'' (2019) * '' Celebrity Duets'' (2006) * ''

'' (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 away ...

'' (2015–2016) * ''Planet's Got Talent'' (2015–2016) * '' Red or Black?'' (2011–2012) * ''

That Dog Can Dance ''That'' is an English language word used for several grammatical purposes. These include use as an adjective, conjunction, pronoun, adverb, and intensifier; it has distance from the speaker, as opposed to words like ''this''. The word did not ori ...

'' (2012) * ''

The Greatest Dancer ''The Greatest Dancer'' is a British dance competition television series created by Simon Cowell and produced by Syco Entertainment. The first BBC programme created by Cowell, ''The Greatest Dancer'' sees previously undiscovered dance acts perfo ...

'' (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 ''The You Generation'' is an online video-sharing competition launched by Simon Cowell in partnership with YouTube. It comprises a series of themed competitions where contestants can upload videos to win prizes. A new contest runs every two weeks ...

'' (2013–2014) * '' Walk the Line'' (2021) * ''Your Song'' (2017)

Screen and stage