In the BBC series Dragons' Den, an entrepreneur's initial pitch lasts three minutes.
The pitch is the opening presentation in which a business owner explains their product or service, describes the company, and states the investment they want. After this timed introduction, the Dragons question the entrepreneur about subjects such as sales, costs, profit, ownership and future plans.
The three-minute limit applies to the initial presentation, not to the entire appearance. Questioning and negotiation can continue much longer, and some pitches become memorable because the Dragons spend substantial time examining the figures. The format is designed to make contestants communicate their business proposition quickly before facing detailed scrutiny.
A common mix-up is to treat the three minutes as the length of the whole deal-making segment. It is specifically the opening pitch. The programme is the British version of the international Dragons' Den format, which originated from Japan's Money Tigers.