Dragons' Den

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Dragons' Den is a reality television format program featuring entrepreneurs pitching their business ideas in order to secure investment finance from a panel of venture capitalists. The programme originated in Japan as Money Tigers or Tigers of Money ("?????", a pun on "Tiger of Malaya", the nickname of WWII general Tomoyuki Yamashita). The format was created and is owned by Nippon TV and distributed by Sony Pictures Television.

Local versions of the show have been produced in nearly 30 countries, as well as one for the Arab world; in some countries, more than one version has aired. The most popular name for the show is Dragons' Den or variations thereof, a name that originated in the United Kingdom. The show has also been titled Shark Tank (a name that originated in the United States) and Lions' Den, and variations on those names, among others. In versions where the name of the show contains a creature's name, the investors are referred to as that creature.

Video Dragons' Den

Format

The contestants are usually product designers or service operators who have what they consider to be a viable and potentially very profitable business idea, but who lack funding and direction. They pitch their idea to five rich entrepreneurial businesspeople, who in most iterations of the show are referred to as "dragons", "tigers" (in the original Japanese show), "lions" or "sharks". Before the show, the contestants have named a specific amount of money that they wish to get (along with a percentage in the business that the contestant is offering to sell to the investors), and the rules stipulate that if they do not raise at least this amount from the dragons, they get nothing. In return, the contestant gives the dragons a percentage of the company's stock, which is the chief point of negotiation. The program does not show the entire pitch as scenes are selected and edited from the episode due to time constraints.

The dragons probe the idea further once the contestant has made the presentation. This will either reveal a sound business proposition that the investor may become interested in investing capital in return for equity, or an embarrassing lack of preparation on the part of the contestant (such as the contestant's lack of knowledge of the business' profits or margins), the uncovering of troubling facts (such as insufficient sales or manufacturing margins) or other reasons which may play a factor in the investors consequently rejecting the investment (such as the investor asking for a larger equity stake in the business than the contestant wants to give up, the contestant's valuation on the business being too high compared to its overall profits, the product not having any proprietary value or the investor's belief that they cannot add value to the business). A contestant may give a counteroffer to the investors, if they feel their offer is not sufficient compared to the contestant's initial offer, which may also be subject to rejection if the investor feels the contestant asking for too high a monetary amount and/or an insufficiently low equity.

Maps Dragons' Den

Versions

Dragons' Den series have been produced in numerous different countries. Apart from Japan (where the show debuted) the show names, structures, and styles are based upon the UK version.

Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, the show is called Fikr wa Talash. The show was produced by Bamyan media with the help of the Moby Group's strategic communications arm, Lapis Ltd, and aired on the Group's most popular channel in Afghanistan, TOLO TV, reaching an estimated 7 million viewers in 2010.

Arab world

In the Arab world, Dragons' Den was known as Dragons' Den: Al Aareen ?????? (The Den). It was broadcast on the Lebanese channel Future Television and was hosted by Ibrahim Abu Jawdeh. The show received contestants from various Arab countries.

The panel of Dragons for the 2007 series consisted of:

Omar El-Quqa
Ahmad Tantash
Nassif Karam
Roger Azar

Egypt

The Egyptian version of Dragons' Den is El Mashrou3 ("The Project"). The show was created in 2013 by Anna Elliot, the founder of the NGO Bamyan Media. It was broadcast on the national channel Alnahar and followed by approximately 4 million people. The program also created the biggest community of entrepreneurs through a digital platform connected to the show with 1 million participants. The panel of Dragons consisted of :

Hala Hattab
Hisham Al Jamal

Australia

Dragons' Den (2005)

The Australian version of Dragons' Den was broadcast on the Seven Network and hosted by Andrew O'Keefe. Unlike in other versions, here the host ran through the outline of the business with the contestant before the contestant began negotiating with the Dragons for a deal. The show was produced by Michael Horrock. The Australian Dragons were:

Peter Higgins
Sarina Russo
Darryn Lyons
Suzi Dafnis
Siimon Reynolds

The Seven Network announced in December 2005 that the show would not be back for a second season after poor ratings.

Shark Tank (2015)

The format was revived by Network Ten, under the American Shark Tank name, for a show that premiered February 2015. The Sharks for this edition are Janine Allis (founder of Boost Juice), Andrew Banks (founder of Talent2), Steve Baxter (entrepreneur, investor, internet pioneer), John McGrath (founder of McGrath Estate Agents) and Naomi Simson (founder of RedBalloon). The show is hosted by Sarah Harris. Unlike 7's previous edition, the show was successful and returned for a second season in 2016.

Austria

The Austrian version is called 2 Minuten 2 Millionen, which means "2 Minutes 2 Million". It debuted on Puls 4.

Canada

English version

The English-language Canadian version of Dragons' Den began airing in 2006.

The Canadian Dragons are/were:

French Canadian version

The Quebec version, Dans l'oeil du dragon (In the Dragons' Eye), began airing in 2012, hosted by Paul Houde.

Past and present dragons include:

Dany Vachon -- co-founder of Impera Advisory Inc, PVG Partners LLC and Fusion Immunovative/NVNC
Danièle Henkel -- president and founder of Danièle Henkel Inc
François Lambert -- co-founder of Aheeva and Atelka
Gaétan Frigon -- executive chairman of Publipage
Normand Legault (Canadian Grand Prix, Just for Laughs)
Alexandre Taillefer (Stingray Digital, Téo Taxi, Voir, L'Actualité, etc)
Serge Beauchemin
Martin-Luc Archambault
Mitch Garber

China

The Chinese version of "Dragons' Den" (?????)started airing in May 2016 on Shenzhen Satellite TV. The Chinese format is produced by Shanghai-based IPCN (International Programme International Network).

Past and present Chinese Dragons include:

Bob Xu, co-founder of New Oriental Education and ZhenFund (Season 1-2)
Annabelle Long Yu, CEO of Bertelsmann China (Season 1-2)
Li Guoqing, co-founder & CEO of Dang Dang (Season 1-2)
Yao Jinbo, Founder & CEO of 58.com (Season 1-2)
Hugo Shong, chairman of IDG Greater China (Season 1)
Zhou Hongyi, co-founder and CEO of Qihoo 360 (Season 1)
Jerry Huang, founder and CEO of Gaudi Capital (Season 2)

Croatia

The Croatian version of Dragons' Den called Zmajevo gnijezdo was scheduled to be broadcast in May 2007 on Croatian Radiotelevision and produced by Ocean Film, a local production company.

Contracted Croatian Dragons were:

Maja Pe?arevi? -- owner of Generalturist, the leading and oldest travel agency in Croatia.
Hrvoje Prpi? -- owner of Smee d.o.o, bamboo flooring company.
Davor ?tern -- owner of Trade Consulting d.o.o., business consulting company.
Juroslav Buljuba?i? -- co-owner of Blue Line International, the international maritime company.
Branko Rogli? -- owner of Orbico, one of the leading importers and distributors of various consumer goods and toys in Croatia.

A few shows were filmed but never broadcast for undisclosed reasons.

Czech Republic

In the Czech Republic, the show is called Den D (The D-Day).

It first aired on 31 March 2009 on Czech TV (CT1 channel), in a very similar set up to the British version of BBC.

The show is hosted by radio host Jan Pokorny, and the dragon investors are:

Ivan Pilny - former GM of Microsoft in Czech Republic, Chairman of the Board of Czech Telecom and entrepreneur (1st & 3rd series)
Marta Novakova - founder and CEO of U&SLUNO software company (1st, 2nd & 3rd series)
Ondrej Bartos - serial entrepreneur, consultant and venture capitalist, Partner with Credo Ventures (1st & 2nd series)
Dana Berova - former minister of informatics, entrepreneur and Business Development Director of Gartner (1st, 2nd & 3rd series)
Tomio Okamura - Czech-Japanese entrepreneur in travel and retail, he brings Japanese tourists to the Czech Republic and sells Japanese products to Czechs (1st, 2nd & 3rd series)
Michael Rostock - investment banker and advisor with Venture Investors Corporate Finance (2nd & 3rd series)

The Dragons are/were:

Denmark

A Danish version of the show, Løvens Hule ("Lions' Den"), began airing in April 2015. The five "lions" are Christian Stadil, Birgit Aaby, Tommy Ahlers, Ilse Jacobsen and Jesper Buch.

Finland

Lion's Mouth (2007)

In Finland, the first version of the show was Leijonan kita, which means the jaws or the mouth of a lion. The show began running on 27 September 2007 on the MTV3 channel, and aired for one season. It was hosted by Anna Sorainen. The local leijonat (lions) were Kyösti Kakkonen, Eero Lehti, Toivo Sukari, Lisa Sounio and Kaija Ward.

Lion's Den (2013)

In February 2013 the show re-emerged on the Nelonen channel, this time named Leijonan luola ("Lion's Den"). The show was hosted by Kirsi Salo, and the new lions were Riku Asikainen, Jorma Terentjeff, Ari Lahti, Anne Berner and Oskari Lehtonen.

Germany

The German version is called Die Höhle der Löwen, which means Lions' Den. It debuted on 19 August 2014 on VOX. The German "lions" are:

Vural Öger (Season 1-2) -- Travel entrepreneur
Jochen Schweizer (Season 1-3) -- Pioneer of bungee jumping in Germany, founder of a German web portal for adventure gifts
Lencke Steiner (Season 1-2) -- Chairwoman of German Federal Association of Young Entrepreneurs (BJU), Bremen head of the Free Democratic Party
Frank Thelen (Season 1-4) -- Managing director of a venture capital & private equity company
Judith Williams (Season 1-4) -- Shopping channel presenter and businesswoman with own fashion and jewellery lines
Carsten Maschmeyer (Season 3-4) -- Founder of financial services company AWD Holding and investor in technology and health care companies
Ralf Dümmel (Season 3-4) -- Head of consumer goods company DS Produkte
Dagmar Wöhrl (Season 4) - Lawyer, entrepreneur and politician

The first episode of the second season aired on 18 August 2015. The third season launched on 23 August 2016, introducing two new presenters. A fourth season was announced for 2017.

Ireland

An Irish version of the show began in 2009 on RTÉ One, the state broadcaster. It is presented by Richard Curran, Deputy Editor of The Sunday Business Post.

The Irish Dragons are/were:

The Dragons have appeared on television in Ireland, in promotion of the series, on Tubridy Tonight, on RTÉ One. RTÉ started broadcasting show promos after Christmas 2008 as part of their winter line-up.

The first episode was broadcast on 19 February 2009.

A third season of Dragons' Den began airing on RTÉ One, on Thursday, 20 February 2011. Norah Casey was the new Dragon for the third season. Episodes at the end of the third season, for the first time on Dragons' Den in Ireland, showed the Dragons on tour visiting their past investments.

A fourth season of Dragons' Den was commissioned. Sean O'Sullivan replaced Seán Gallagher. Sean is co-founder at Avego Ltd, based in Kinsale.

For the fourth series of Dragons' Den, a live, interactive "Sixth Dragon Game" was developed to be played whilst watching the show, in which viewers are able to decide in real time if they're IN or OUT as the pitches unfold. The "Sixth Dragon Game" is the first live, interactive game for a TV show in Ireland.

Israel

In Israel, Dragons' Den is entitled Hakrishim, Hebrew for "The Sharks". It is produced by Gil Productions and is broadcast on Channel 10. It is hosted by Guy Zohar. In the Israeli version, there are six dragons who rotate their appearance weekly. The first season was broadcast during the summer and fall of 2006. The dragons in season 1 were: Ze'ev Holtzman, Israela Shtier, Aviv Tzidon, Oded Dessau, Jacky Ben-Zaken, and Nir Sharatzki. The second season began being broadcast on Channel 10 on 24 May 2007. As in the first season, the dragons rotate their appearance weekly. Aviv Tzidon and Jacky Ben-Zaken returned from the first season and were joined by the following new dragons:

Yossi Moldavsky
Nir Barkat
Amir Eyal
Roni Ross
Amos Luzon

Japan

Titled ????? ("Man? no Tora", Money Tigers), this is the original version. It was created by and broadcast on Nippon Television from 2001 to 2004. It was the first entertainment programme in the history of Japanese television that dealt with the concept of business investment. During its three-year run, as many as 16 business executives appeared in the programme as Tigers.

Kenya

The premier of Lion's Den was in October 2016 on NTV. The show was sponsored by KCB Group, the largest commercial bank in East Africa. The format was introduced to Kenya by Quite Bright Films Kenya Ltd (QBF) who produce the show in Nairobi.

The Kenyan Lions are:

Darshan Chandaria, director and Group CEO of Chandaria group
Kris Senanu, venture capitalist
Myke Rabar, entertainment Guru
Olive Gachara, businesswoman in fashion and image consultancy
Wandia Gichuru, businesswoman with own fashion lines and stores

Mexico

In Mexico the series is called Shark Tank México: Negociando con tiburones or just simply Negociando con Tiburones, Spanish for "Negotiating with Sharks".

The sharks were:

Ana Victoria García
Arturo Elías Ayub
Carlos Bremer
Jorge Vergara
Rodrigo Herrera Aspra

Netherlands

In the Netherlands the show ran on Nederland 3 for two seasons. The first season was broadcast in May 2007, every Friday at 20:25. The second season was broadcast in May 2008, every Monday at 21:25. Both seasons were hosted by Jort Kelder.

The dragons were:

Henk Keilman
Annemarie van Gaal
Jan Pieter Melchior (2007)
Willem Sijthoff
Arjen de Koning
George Banken (2008)

New Zealand

Initially, the UK and Australian series of Dragons' Den were broadcast in New Zealand before a local version was produced by Eyeworks Television. It broadcast on TV One in 2006 and was hosted by Rawdon Christie. The dragons were:

Julie Christie
Bob Jones
Annette Presley
Paul Webb
Barry Colman

Nigeria

Nigeria's adaptation of Dragons' Den was broadcast weekly in 2008 on the AIT Network and produced by Storm Vision.

The Nigerian Dragons were:

Prince Femi Tejuoso
Ibukun Awosika
Chris Parkes
Alexander Amosu
John Momoh
Tokunboh Ishmael

Pakistan

In Pakistan, the program airs as Idea Croron Ka and is broadcast on Neo News. It is a joint venture between Chaudhry Muhammad Akram Centre for Entrepreneurship Development (CMACED) at Superior University and Neo News. The first episode premiered on 18th March 2017. The main lead and driving force of this show is Nabeel A. Qadeer who was the Director Entrepreneurship at Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB).

The judges include:

Salim Ghauri, Founder and CEO of Netsol technologies (Pvt.) Ltd
Naeem Zamindar, Pakistan Country Director and CEO of Acumen
Humayun Mazhar, Founder, CEO and Chairman at CresVentures

Poland

In Poland, the program is called "Dragons' Den - How to Be a Millionaire" and is broadcast on the station TV4 since 2011. The biggest win in the program happened April 24, 2011 in the amount 15,000,000 PLN (5,500,000 U.S. dollars)

The Polish Dragons in 2011 are:

Maciej Kaczmarski, founder, "Kaczmarski Inkasso companies", "National Debt Register" and "Reliable Company", called the king of Polish recovery
Anna Garwoli?ska, head of "Glaubicz Garwoli?ska Consultants"
Grzegorz Hajdarowicz, owner of the "Group Gremi"
Marian Owerko, CEO Bakalland
Krzysztof Golonka, president of an investment fund "Xevin"

Portugal

The Portuguese version of Dragons' Den has the American name Shark Tank. It is broadcast on the SIC Network. It began in 2015, and a second season is planned.

The Portuguese Sharks are:

Mário Ferreira
João Rafael Koehler
Susana Sequeira
Tim Vieira
Miguel Ribeiro Ferreira

Romania

There is a Romanian version of the format called Arena Leilor (Lions' Arena). The Romanian Lions are:

Marius Ghenea
Dragos Anastasiu
Florin Talpes
Mircea Tudor
Mihaela Nicola
Cristina Batlan
Orlando Szasz

The show started in 2007.

Russia

There was a Russian version of the show called KAPITAL.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabian broadcaster STV1 showed the BBC version of Dragons' Den in 2010, then broadcast a local version in 2011. It was called ??????, or "Traders". The dragons were:

Saleh Kamel
Ahmed Fitihy
Nashwa Altahir
Altaiar
Alhalafy

Slovenia

The Slovenian version of the show was called Dober posel ("Good Deal"). It was aired by then-new Slovenian broadcaster Planet TV, owned by Telekom Slovenije. The show was announced in May 2012, and premiered on November 11, 2012.

The Slovenian investors were:

Branko Drobnak, Procurator at Alta Skupina d.d., a asset management, non-discretional brokerage services, corporate finance services, accounting and audit services company. He is part of The Business Angels Club of Slovenia and non-executive Chairman of Acies bio d.o.o, a biotechnology contract research organization.
Borut Rismal General Manager, CHS d.o.o., a computer peripherals distribution company
Daniela Bervar Country Manager for Slovenia at Cotrugli Business School and co-owner of MEDIA LAB d.o.o. deal of the day business company.
Jure Miku? founder of RSG Capital, a venture-capital management company
Matja? Kr?, a business angel and Managing Director at Ideus d.o.o., business consulting services for small and mid-sized companies.

South Africa

Dragon's Den South Africa premiered on 23 September 2014 on Mzansi Magic. In a 2014 episode, Vusi Thembekwayo, one of the Dragons, signed his biggest deal, when he invested ZAR2 million in a Halaal abattoir owned by contestant Johan Jacobs and received a 40% stake in the business. There were two seasons of the show.

The South African "dragons" were:

Lebo Gunguluza, runs Gunguluza Enterprises & Media which boasts 12 print publications, stakes in numerous hotels and a car-hire business.
Vusi Thembekwayo, a motivational speaker and CEO of Watermark Pan-African Capital Ltd, with over ZAR4,32 billion in capital.
Polo Leteka Radebe, CEO of Identity Partners, a small and medium enterprises advisory and fund management services firm founded in 2007
Vinny Lingham, a serial internet entrepreneur from Cape Town with ties to Silicon Valley.
Gil Oved, founder and co-CEO of The Creative Counsel, an advertising agency with over ZAR600 million in turnover per year.

In October 2016 the show was renamed to Shark Tank South Africa and premiered on M-Net.

The "sharks" are:

Dawn Nathan-Jones
Vinny Lingham
Romeo Kumalo
Marnus Broodryk
Gil Oved

The show made news when Vinny Lingham invested in an augmented reality startup using bitcoin instead of dollars.

Spain

The title of the Spanish version is Tu Oportunidad (Your Opportunity) and went to air on October 30, 2013 by TVE.

Sri Lanka

The Sri Lankan version is called "Ath Pavura" (??? ????), which means "Wall of Tuskers". It debuted on Independent Television Network on September 24, 2017. Unlike the other versions, the Sri Lankan version focuses on social entrepreneurs and impact investors.

Sweden

The British version was on air in Sweden for several years on TV8 and BBC Prime. A Swedish version called Draknästet ("The Dragons' Nest") was broadcast in 2009 on Sveriges Television. A second season started in March 2010.

The Swedish Dragons 2010 are:

Mats Gabrielsson, who sold his IT firm in the late 1980s for over $100 million
Douglas Roos founder and chairman of nyheter24.se
Susanna Falkengren cofounder and member of Exipos Invest
Sven Hagströmer founder of HQ, Avanza, Investment AB Öresund and also in the board for the public companies Bilia, Eworks and Insplanet
Richard Båge, founder of Insplanet IPO in 2006, founder and chairman of Mediaplanet

Previous Dragons 2009:

Gunilla von Platen CEO and founder of Xzakt Kundrelation, a telemarketing company located in Sweden
Ljubo Mrnjavac sold his fast food company Pölsemannen 2002. Today active in real estate

Turkey

The Turkish version of Dragons' Den is on BloombergHT. Baybars Altunta? is one of the dragons.

Ukraine

In Ukraine, the series was called ????? ??????? (Akuly biznesu, "Business Sharks") and featured Dragons such as future presidential candidate Serhiy Tihipko.

United Kingdom

In the UK, Dragons' Den is broadcast on BBC Two, which has exclusive rights to the show's format from its Japanese producers. The Executive Producer is Dominic Bird and it is hosted by BBC Newsnight presenter Evan Davis. The Dragons are/were:

United States

In 2008, television producer Mark Burnett signed a deal with format holder Sony to produce an American version of the series. The series on U.S. television is titled Shark Tank.

The U.S. network ABC ordered a pilot episode which was produced by Sony Pictures TV. On October 9, 2008, a casting producer announced that The Shark Tank was accepting applications for a pilot, giving entrepreneurs two weeks to submit their ideas. The pilot was filmed from January 6 to January 9, 2009 in Los Angeles.

On September 23, 2016, Shark Tank began its eighth season. The current "sharks" are:

Robert Herjavec, who sold his IT security firm at the height of the dot-com bubble for over $100 million. Previously appeared on the Canadian version of Dragon's Den.
Lori Greiner, President and CEO of For Your Ease Only, as well as host of a monthly show on the QVC Network.
Kevin O'Leary, former co-host of The Lang and O'Leary Exchange on CBC News Network, formerly president of The Learning Company, which was sold to Mattel for $3.7 billion in 1999. Previously appeared on the Canadian version of Dragon's Den.
Barbara Corcoran, self-made real estate millionaire who sold her company The Corcoran Group for $66 million in 2001.
Daymond John, founder of FUBU.
Mark Cuban, owner of the National Basketball Association's Dallas Mavericks and billionaire entrepreneur.

For the first two seasons of the series, Kevin Harrington was a regular shark. He was replaced in the third season by Mark Cuban.

Unlike versions of the show in other countries, the U.S. version uses a rotating cast of sharks every season, of which five usually appear in each episode, although all six sharks have occasionally appeared on a single episode. Also on occasion, guest investors fill in for a regular shark on the panel. Past guest investors include:

Jeff Foxworthy, comedian and television personality.
Steve Tisch, Chairman and Executive Vice President of the New York Giants.
John Paul DeJoria, founder of John Paul Mitchell Systems haircare line and The Patron Spirits Company.
Nick Woodman, the founder and CEO of GoPro.
Chris Sacca, Proprietor of Lowercase Capital which has early investments in companies like, Uber, Twitter, Kickstarter and Instagram.
Ashton Kutcher, American actor and investor.
Troy Carter, Founder, chairman and CEO of Atom Factory

Vietnam

A Vietnamese version of the show, to be titled Shark Tank Vi?t Nam, is set to air on Vietnam Television in 2017. The "cá m?p" (sharks) that have been announced so far are Tr??ng Gia Bình, V? V?n Ti?n and Tr?n Bá D??ng.

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References

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Source of article : Wikipedia

Thursday, March 8, 2018