Advanced Television

VOD

Apple first look deal with Ridley Scott

Apple has agreed a multi-year first-look deal with renowned Hollywood director Ridley Scott and his Scott Free Productions company. Under the terms of the deal, Scott Free will create TV shows for the Apple TV+ streaming platform. The Scott Free production company has produced a number of successful TV series including Amazon’s Man in the […]

May 15, 2020

Netflix acquires The Rock’s Ball and Chain

Superhero movie Ball and Chain – starring Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Emily Blunt – has been acquired by Netflix. Loosely based on the 90s comic book of the same name, the film follows a troubled married couple that receive superpowers that only work when they are together. The film is written by Oscar-nominated screenwriter […]

May 15, 2020

Study: Animation most-watched lockdown genre

According to stream-tracking website Reelgood, animated content has seen a 22 per cent spike in total stream time during the lockdown period. Rick and Morty leads the charge for animated shows, along with the likes of Steven Universe Future and The Simpsons. Following on animation’s heels are family movies at 16.95 per cent, while cult […]

May 14, 2020

Vodafone Italia adds Prime Video

Vodafone Italia is now offering its TV customers access to Amazon’s streaming service, Prime Video. The Prime Video app has been added to the Vodafone TV Box, expanding the offer of services, which already includes Netflix, YouTube, Now TV, Chili and Infinity. New customers will get Prime for free for 6 months – including Amazon […]

May 14, 2020From Branislav Pekic in Rome

Analyst: US lockdown fuels on-demand surge

According to new research from actionable intelligence provider The Diffusion Group (TDG), six in ten US adult broadband users who use pay-TV on-demand services have increased viewing as a result of Covid-19-related stay-at-home directives, with 19 per cent reporting a significant increase. “Much has been written about recent spikes in the use of on-demand streaming […]

May 14, 2020

HBO Max unveils second slate of Originals

HBO Max has revealed the second slate of premium Max Originals available to viewers after the streaming service’s May 27th launch. The next wave of titles coming to the platform begins June 18th with the debut of the entire first season of the unscripted kids adventure competition series Karma, led by YouTube host Michelle Khare. On June 25th, […]

May 14, 2020

SpotX partners with Pluto TV LatAm

SpotX, the video advertising platform, has announced a new strategic partnership with Pluto TV, the AVoD service. As part of the collaboration, SpotX will be a programmatic partner working with Pluto TV to power the video monetisation of its content across several countries in Latin America including: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, […]

May 14, 2020

Katzenberg blames Covid for Quibi fail, others disagree

“I attribute everything that has gone wrong to Coronavirus. Everything. But we own it,” Jeffrey Katzenberg told The New York Times as he lamented the poor start for Quibi, his smartphone short-form play. “Is it the avalanche of people that we wanted and were going for out of launch? The answer is no. It’s not […]

May 13, 2020By Colin Mann

Lockdown gives iPlayer record numbers

These unprecedented times have seen the vast majority of Brits spending much more time at home than usual, and with more time on their hands, viewers are turning to BBC iPlayer in record-breaking numbers. The BBC reports that: BBC iPlayer’s biggest-ever day was May 10th, with 22.5 million requests, and 1.1 million requests for the […]

May 13, 2020

Pluto TV adds 24 channels in Germany, Switzerland, Austria

Pluto TV, the AVoD service, has expanded its offering in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland (GSA) launching 24 new channels. Having begun 2020 with a lineup of 45 live channels, Pluto TV has rapidly grown its portfolio to now deliver 75 channels in these three markets. To meet the growing demand of ad-supported streaming throughout GSA, […]

May 13, 2020