Rakuten TV signs new European partnerships
February 27, 2024
Rakuten TV has secured new partnership agreements with telecommunications companies and TV Platforms in different European countries.
Rakuten TV and 1&1 have extended their initial agreement that included more than 6,000 titles available for both rental and purchase (TVoD) by adding hundreds of titles that will be offered on demand completely free of charge (AVoD) to their subscribers. The company’s collaboration with 1&1 comes as part of a wider partnership with the Group’s companies, with Rakuten Symphony providing infrastructure to the German telco and Rakuten Advertising managing Rakuten TV’s advertising inventory.
Rakuten TV has also announced a new avenue to maximise the distribution of its services through alliances with two key TV platforms that offer services to telcos; Agile TV and Masmedia TV. Agile TV is a provider of digital OTT TV and video distribution solutions, offering a comprehensive portfolio of scalable products, SaaS applications, and cloud-based services for telcos, such as Tiscali in Italy. Masmedia TV provides a technological tool so that operators can offer their customers a streaming pay-TV service with a high degree of personalisation and numerous content alternatives, with Adamo being one of its main customers.
These new agreements continue to align with the strategy which has already started to be rolled out in recent years by Rakuten TV through partnerships such as Netgem in the UK and Ireland, Zattoo in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and Alteox in Luxembourg where Rakuten TV currently offers its TVoD service. The new deals with Agile TV in Italy and in Spain through Masmedia TV extend the company’s services in those countries.
Jorge del Puerto, European Head of Partnerships and Distribution at Rakuten TV, commented: “The agreements with Agile TV and Masmedia TV are part of the strategy we have as a company to become a reference partner for telcos. Agile TV and Masmedia TV perfectly complement traditional telco services, allowing telco customers to access Rakuten TV content.”