SVOD


Hulu Japan gets ‘Filthy Rich’ from Newen Distribution

Hulu Japan has bought two seasons of New Zealand family drama Filthy Rich from Newen Distribution. The drama, originally commissioned by New Zealand’s TV2 and produced by Filthy Productions, has already been sold into Hulu out of the US and Fox in the Middle East. The format is also being remade Stateside by Fox. The […]

Asian streamer Viu strikes output deal with Discovery Networks Asia Pacific

Hong Kong-headquartered streamer Viu has struck an output deal with Discovery Networks Asia Pacific that will see a raft of Discovery titles launch on the SVOD. Under the pact, Discovery Network Asia Pacific channels such as Discovery, Discovery Asia, Animal Planet, Food Network, TLC and HGTV will all land on Viu. The content will be […]

Vice bets big on news as Studios arm lines up Netflix, Amazon projects

Vice Media Group’s head of international Dominique Delport is betting big on the youth brand’s news division, which is set for international expansion alongside its latest asset, women’s publisher Refinery29.   Speaking to the UK’s Broadcasting Press Guild on Thursday (28 November), Delport proclaimed that “news is back” and that there is renewed scope for […]

Disney+ downloads exceed 15 million, sending shares to record high

Disney+ has been downloaded more than 15 million times and generated $5m via in-app purchases since its launch less than two weeks ago, according to new research. The data, provided by US research outfit Apptopia, helped power shares in the Mouse House to an all-time high of $151.64 on Tuesday, although Disney+ growth has not […]

Iflix rejigs management structure with Mark Francis named chief content officer

Asian streamer iflix is rejigging its management structure, with Mark Francis taking the reins as chief content officer of the business. Francis, a former Nat Geo exec, most recently served as global director of original programming for the Kuala Lumpur-headquartered SVOD – a role he has occupied for almost four years. The exec begins his […]

John Battsek: SVOD-backed sports films allow “human” portrayals of athletes like Andy Murray

Andy Murray: Resurfacing producer John Battsek has praised the SVOD-fuelled wave of sports documentaries for allowing for more “human” portrayals of athletes. The Oscar-winning doc producer behind the likes of Searching For Sugar Man and The Imposter tells TBI that sports films are increasingly “about story and the human level of the story”, as demonstrated […]

Starz rolls out standalone Starzplay app in five countries

Lionsgate-backed cable channel Starz is rolling out a direct-to-consumer app in five countries, including the UK and France. The Starzplay app is also launching in Brazil, Germany and Mexico, and plans are in place to launch in 20 additional countries next year. To date, Starzplay has found distribution via platforms such as Apple TV and […]

Amazon follows Australian men’s cricket team following ball-tampering scandal

Amazon Prime Video has greenlit a docuseries following the Australian men’s cricket team in the wake of its controversial ball-tampering scandal. The Test: A New Era For Australia’s Team picks up immediately after members of the national men’s cricket team were caught altering the surface of a cricket ball to change its flight trajectory during […]

Netflix preps sequel series to History’s ‘Vikings’

Netflix has signed up for a Vikings spin-off from MGM Television and the show’s original creative team.  Michael Hirst’s Vikings: Valhalla begins 100 years after the original History Channel series concludes and follows the adventures of Vikings Leif Erikson, Freydis, Harald Harada and the Norman King and Viking descendant William the Conqueror. Initially helmed by […]

Raw TV scores first Netflix commission as it grows US team with Felicity Morris

Three Identical Strangers producer Raw TV has scored its first Netflix commission with a documentary series on a cat killer spurred on by Internet notoriety. The series Don’t F**k With Cats: Hunting An Internet Killer centres on a mysterious man who posts videos online of himself torturing and killing kittens and cats. The film follows […]