ProSiebenSat.1, Discovery in German OTT JV
June 25, 2018
ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery have revealed plans to build a local streaming platform in Germany by integrating 7TV, maxdome and Eurosport Player in one place. The OTT platform will offer a full entertainment package of live streams, an extensive media library with local content, the best from Hollywood, as well as high-quality sports content.
The future product will feature an ad-supported VoD free tier and an SVoD premium pay tier with access to exclusive sports and movies. ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery say they aim to create bespoke content and rapidly scale up and invest into the platform. A team of more than 200 professionals will support the start of the platform in the first half of 2019.
Max Conze, Chief Executive Officer of the ProSiebenSat.1 Group, said: “All of us want to watch the entertainment we love whenever, wherever and on any device – so I am really excited that ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery are joining forces to create the number one German streaming platform – our aim is 10 million users in the first two years and we are putting very significant resources and investment with urgency into this effort. I am inviting RTL and ARD/ ZDF to join us so we can have one German champion. This is just the start of the journey, now we roll up our sleeves.”
David Zaslav, President and Chief Executive Officer of Discovery, added; “This is an exciting next step in our strategy of reaching more viewers on more screens as the global leader in real life entertainment and international sports. Together with ProSiebenSat.1, we are building a world class streaming service to nourish superfans in one of our most important international markets while also creating a new model for the future for viewers to enjoy their favorite content.”
The joint venture team in place is led by Alexandar Vassilev, former Google and YouTube executive. Conze, Chief will personally head the board of the joint venture. Jean Briac (JB) Perrette, President and CEO of Discovery Networks International will represent Discovery on the board.
Alexandar Vassilev, CEO of 7TV commented: “All our efforts are focused on understanding what viewers want and building the best, most user-friendly product for German audiences. We have a fast-growing team with experts from around the world and can’t wait to show our platform and services in the first half 2019.”