Sky Deutschland AG has inked an expanded three
year programming deal with Warner Bros. International Television Distribution
that gives it exclusive SVOD rights for all the studio's new releases during
the first pay window and exclusive pay TV rights for all Warner Bros. films
across all distribution channels, including satellite, cable, IPTV, internet,
and mobile.
The
deal, which runs through 2015, includes such films as J. Edgar, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, the new Tim Burton–Johnny Depp
collaboration Dark Shadows, which will be presented on Sky in 3D, and The Dark Knight Rises as well as such the successful German local
productions as Kokowääh and Männerherzen und die ganz ganz große Liebe.
As
part of the deal, all this content will also be available on Sky Anytime Sky
Film, which allows customers to watch the films on demand at no additional
cost.
The
multi-platform rights will allow the operator to expand its Sky Go offering, which
provides customers with access to films online and via the iPad on demand.
The
deal is particularly important for Sky because Warner Bros. was for the third
year in a row the top film distributor in Germany in 2011, representing three
of the top five box office hits in Germany last year -- Harry Potter and the
Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Kokowääh and Hangover 2.
Warner
Bros. also held the top spot in local productions.
Altogether,
more than 30 Warner titles premiered via Sky on TV within the last year.
In
a statement, Gary Davey, executive VP of programming at Sky Deutschland called
the agreement "one of our most important movie deals ever."
"Having
completed similar deals last year with further important film studios, the
addition of our new arrangement with Warner ensures Sky is the undisputed home
of film in Germany and Austria," Davey added. "Warner has always been an
important partner for Sky and we are delighted to extend our partnership in
such a strategic manner. Not only does this deal secure one of Hollywood's most important
suppliers for Pay TV, it also guarantees quality films for our innovative
services Sky Anytime and Sky Go."
