Cinedigm said it acquired Fandor, a leading independent film subscription streaming service with a catalog of more than 4,600 titles.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
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Cinedigm said it plans to relaunch Fandor’s app and expand distribution of its service from about 900,000 to more than a million in the next 24 months to 30 months. The ad-free service will continue, but an ad-supported on-demand tier and a linear streaming channel will be added.
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Cinedigm also plans to relaunch Keyframe, Fandor’s web and video-based publication dedicated to the art of cinema.
Phil Hopkins, president of Film Detective, acquired by Cinedigm in October, will oversee Fandor and Keyframe. Titles from The Film Detective will be added to the Fandor services.
“This acquisition of Fandor, coming on the heels of our Film Detective acquisition, solidifies Cinedigm’s position as the leading global streaming company for independent films,” said Cinedigm CEO Chris McGurk.
“As a key element of our recently announced streaming rollup strategy, Fandor will immediately benefit from our streaming distribution muscle, huge library of independent films, Matchpoint technology, cost savings and infrastructure and synergies with our wide portfolio of enthusiast streaming channels. We fully expect an immediate EBITDA uplift from Fandor and strong revenue and profit growth going forward,” McGurk said.
Fandor’s film offerings range from high-quality studio classics to festival favorites to essential award-winning foreign cinema features.
“The paradox of the streaming revolution is that it has never been harder to discover classic, essential and new independent and foreign films,” said Erick Opeka, chief strategy officer and president of Cinedigm Networks. “The founders of Fandor had the right idea, launching very early in the streaming growth cycle while still establishing a strong and resilient brand and viewer base. Our mission at Cinedigm is to enable viewers, including independent film enthusiasts, to stream their passions, and I can’t think of a streaming service that is truer to our mission than Fandor.”
