Turkey world's second highest TV series exporter after US

ISTANBUL

'The Magnificent Century' became hugely popular both in Turkey and internationally and has been watched by over 200 million people.

Turkey is globally the second highest exporter of TV series abroad after the United States, and it plans to reach $2 billion from exporting cultural products by 2023, Turkish Exporters Assembly (TİM) head Mehmet Büyükekşi said on Oct. 25.

“The volume of the global cinema and TV industry is expected to reach $100 billion by 2017. Turkey plays a big role in exporting TV dramas, being the second biggest TV drama exporter in the world after the U.S. We are planning to increase the volume of our cultural product exports to $2 billion by 2023,” Büyükekşi said in a press conference, which was also attended by American movie director Bobby Roth, who has directed a number of popular TV shows including “Lost.”

The popularity of Turkish television series has skyrocketed over the last decade, particularly in Middle Eastern and southern European countries. Turkish series have been exported to over 100 countries, contributing to a boom in the country’s domestic television industry.

In 2012, Turkish soap opera exports were worth around $200 million, up from just $10,000 in 2004, according to TİM data.

“The cinema and TV industry is of crucial importance for Turkey, which has become an effective power in its neighboring cultural area,” Büyükekşi noted.

One particular success story is “The Magnificent Century,” which focuses on the life of the 16th century Ottoman Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent. The show proved hugely popular both in Turkey and internationally, being broadcast in 43 countries and watched by over 200 million people.

The TİM recently started a new campaign to promote Turkey in the world with the slogan “Turkey: Discover the Potential”

“We picked this slogan to call the world to explore the potential of Turkey. The 100-year-old Turkish movie sector has great potential and it is highly competitive in global markets, from its scriptwriters to its actors,” Büyükekşi said.

Roth, who is in Turkey to direct a number of episodes of a TV series on Turkey’s state TV channel TRT, said the local TV sector had “great potential as long as it could tell the story of Turkey honestly.”