Android, iPad downloads for blinkbox Movies
November 26, 2014
Customers of blinkbox Movies, the video and music streaming service owned by UK supermarket retailer Tesco, can now download films and TV to iPads and Android tablets to watch without an Internet connection.
According to blinkbox co-founder and CEO Adrian Letts, the ability to watch offline on tablets is one of the most frequently requested features, which he said would transform the way many customers use blinkbox – whether that’s by allowing more freedom to watch what they want in the home – or taking their entertainment on the move.
“I am pleased that we have been able to introduce download to tablet in time for the Christmas holidays so those who want to sneak off to bed, the pub or even another country can download a movie or their latest box set obsession and take it with them to enjoy without a connection,” he noted.
The ‘Watch Offline’ update allows customers to download movies and TV shows bought on blinkbox to up to five devices, and rented films to one tablet.
The blinkbox services are pre-installed with Tesco’s latest hudl tablet which went on sale in October and has received overwhelmingly positive reviews.
Separately, blinkbox Movies revealed it had signed a deal with Entertainment Film Distributors, bringing its content offering to 100 per cent of major new films released in the UK, describing it as the latest in a flurry of new content deals with studios and distributors.
This includes a recent tie-up with Channel 4 that added hundreds of hours of TV series including global franchise The Inbetweeners and hit comedies Peep Show, Miranda and Derek starring Ricky Gervais.
Key titles added with the EFD deal include American Hustle, The Butler, Transcendence, I, Frankenstein, The Giver, Her and August: Osage County.
Douglas Davis, blinkbox’s director, content acquisition and sales, said the new deal strengthened its position as the UK’s go-to service for those wanting to rent, buy and enjoy the latest movies and TV on multiple devices, without being tied into a subscription or one specific brand of device. “And only blinkbox allows you to earn Clubcard points as you buy and rent your digital films,” he advised.