FRAPA, the Format Recognition and Protection Association, has announced early findings from its consultation with members and wider industry and how it plans to set out the direction the association is taking in response.

Since welcoming André Renaud and Nick Smith as co-chairs of the FRAPA Management Board at MIPCOM in October 2025, alongside Richard Ager, Fremantle’s EVP of Legal and Business Affairs as Treasurer, the new leadership has been in active discussion with members and industry stakeholders to understand how FRAPA can best serve a rapidly changing landscape.

These discussions point to a consistent theme: the questions around format IP, from the implications of AI to the rise of the creator economy and the emergence of microdramas and short-form content, are feeling more pressing across the membership than ever before. FRAPA is committed to meeting that moment.

Renaud commented: “In just six months, we’ve seen the ground shift beneath us, from AI putting its own spin on formats like Love Island to the new models and ways of working constantly setting the pace of a new direction. At the heart of this remains the fact that formats continue to play a part in the cultural conversation, and the urgency to come together to support, encourage, promote and protect these stories has never been more acute. Our mission is to ensure our members aren’t just keeping pace but leading the conversation, and we invite old and new members to join an open, honest dialogue about building the next 25 years of sustainable formats.”

FRAPA’s growing membership extends beyond the traditional broadcast sector – one example of an increasing number of rights holders recognising the value of format protection is Tennis Australia Limited which has registered the format of its successful 1-Point Slam event, in which amateur and professional tennis players compete in knockout draws where each match is decided by a single point. This comes on the back of the news that in 2026, Jordan Smith, an amateur player won the A$1 million grand prize.

FRAPA is therefore continuing to engage with creators, national industry bodies across multiple territories, and organisations that represent and support producers at every scale to ensure that the conversations happening inside the association reflect and influence the conversations happening across the industry.

A first step comes this summer, with the launch of a new member resource: a revamped newsletter and interactive platform built around community-sourced insight, covering IP law developments, format deals, commissioning trends, and the implications of a shifting industry, with attributed perspectives from members and key industry figures. FRAPA is inviting its members to help shape it.

Other posts by :

1. US spectrum shuffle could earn SES billions
2. FAA plans to tax rocket launches
3. Could someone buy AST SpaceMobile?
4. FCC: D2C is set for ubiquitous connectivity
5. SpaceX continues complaints over Amazon Leo
6. Starlink struggling for approval on South Africa, India
7. Impressive Starlink deployment rate
8. Bank: Space industry worth $1tn by 2040
9. Xona Space wants 259 LEO satellites

Categories: Articles, Content, Production

Tags: AI, Fremantle, microdrama, MIPCOM