What killed Comcast Corp.’s $45 billion bid for Time Warner Cable Inc.? Regulators’ desire to protect the Internet video on demand industry that is reshaping TV. A combination of the No. 1 and No. 2 US cable companies would have … Continue reading
The former BBC executive and video on demand technology expert who oversaw the launch of the iPlayer has criticized Ofcom’s implementation of local TV as being “years behind in its thinking” and argued that the concept of such a service … Continue reading
While the quality of over-the-top video services is rising, so are viewer demands. Video optimization specialist Conviva released its 2015 Viewer Experience Report today, and the findings lay out challenges for OTT providers. Playback interruptions are the biggest problem for … Continue reading
Amazon is making its acclaimed drama series Transparent available in a day-long free window. The series launched last year on Amazon’s Prime Instant Video and marked the first time that the streaming service had launched an original using the Netflix simultaneous … Continue reading
Stan has become the latest subscription video-on-demand service to roll out in Australia, beating streaming heavyweight Netflix, which will launch in the territory later this year. The new service is a joint venture between free-to-air broadcaster Nine Network and Fairfax Media. … Continue reading
Eastern European region SVOD service Pickbox.tv has acquired exclusive rights to new season CBS shows Madam Secretary and Extant. Pickbox, which operates in the former Yugoslav countries, has already made political thriller Madam Secretary (pictured) available on its Hotbox section, in … Continue reading
New Canadian SVOD service Shomi has acquired exclusive streaming local rights to Rob Thomas’s upcoming drama iZombie. The series will launch on US broadcast network The CW in the 2014-15 season, following the exploits of a young female medical student … Continue reading
Stateside network CBS has given full season orders to all four of its latest dramas. Procedurals Scorpion and NCIS: New Orleans, political drama Madam Secretary and dark thriller series Stalker have all been taken to series following strongs ratings performances. The shows … Continue reading
Amazon Studios is to begin to produce and acquire original movies for early window distribution on Amazon Prime Instant Video. The move comes soon after Netflix promised to shake up the “antiquated” movie distribution model by producing and debuting its own … Continue reading
US premium cable net Starz will launch its planned international subscription on-demand service next year, with initial investment in the project totalling around US$20 million. Premium cable rival HBO has already confirmed it will launch a standalone OTT service. Looking for … Continue reading