Turner Networks has announced the launch specifics of its very first SVOD platform, setting an October 19 debut day for movie-buff service FilmStruck.
Boasting what it calls the “largest streaming library of contemporary and classic arthouse, indie, foreign and cult films as well as extensive bonus content,” FilmStruck culls the vaults of Turner Classic Movies, as well as longtime home entertainment presence The Criterion Collection.
Users will pay $6.99 for the base package and $10.99 if they want streaming access to Criterion. There’s also a $99 lump-sum annual payment option for the premium combined service.
The FilmStruck app is playable on iOS and Android, as well as Amazon Fire TV and Apple TV, but users of Roku, Xbox One, Google Chromecast and other popular streaming devices will have to use the “web” option, for now.
Titles included are Babette’s Feast, Blood Simple, Blow-Up, Breaker Morant, A Hard Day’s Night, Mad Max, Metropolis, Moulin Rouge, My Life as a Dog, Paths of Glory, The Player, A Room with a View, Seven Samurai, The Seventh Seal, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Stardust Memories, The Trip to Bountiful, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and Woodstock.
FilmStruck represents the leading edge of a digital strategy initiated by parent company Time Warner Inc. back in 2014 to become more active in the over-the-top market, but decrease dependence on large SVOD platforms like Netflix at the same time.
"Before the end of this year we'll have at least a couple of direct-to-consumer products in the marketplace," Turner CEO John Martin told reporters in May.
“FilmStruck is a departure from the timeless Hollywood classics that we offer at TCM and a genuinely distinct offering for the streaming marketplace, focusing on a thoughtfully curated experience around hard-to-find, critically acclaimed, independent films from the most celebrated libraries in the world,” said Jennifer Dorian, general manager of TCM and FilmStruck. “By combining the expertise at TCM and the Criterion Collection – two of the leading authorities in film preservation and history – we have created something really special that is a must-have for passionate film lovers."
For more:
- read this Turner press release
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