Joost against Kangaroo
August 20, 2008
Several VOD operators are concerned that the venture could hike prices charged for content to rival distributors. In its submission to the commission’s inquiry on the yet-to-launch VOD platform, Joost acknowledged that "(our) business has (already) suffered as a result" of its inability to get public service content in the UK as it has done in Sweden.
"(Our) inability to obtain content from the joint venture’s parents on reasonable commercial terms is a key issue limiting (our) ability to compete in the UK. While the parties may argue that they stand to gain more financially through a non-exclusive distribution model, the lack of any licensing deals to date with Joost, despite numerous approaches, weakens their position on this issue."
Joost called on the commission to block the bundling together of the Kangaroo distribution arm with its wholesale content sale operation. And it’s worried about Kangaroo’s ability to discount advertising rates for ad packages bought across TV
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