Pluto TV Partners With Fremantle To Distribute 25 New Channels
By Movieguide® Contributor
Paramount’s Pluto TV and distribution company Fremantle are partnering up to distribute 25 free, ad-supported streaming TV channels across 13 countries.
“Pluto TV’s state of the art platform provides a seamless streaming experience for viewers and makes it the perfect home for our channels. This is the next stage of our valued partnership with Pluto TV, as we continue to evolve our FAST [free, ad-supported streaming TV] strategy and content delivery for our global audience,” Laura Florence, the senior vice president of global fast channels at Fremantle, said in a statement.
Fremantle is “one of the world’s largest and most successful producers and distributors of entertainment, drama, film, and documentaries,” per their website.
New Deal
This new deal will see Pluto TV add new channels in the U.S., Canada, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Spain, Italy, San Marino, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and the UK.
Users will get access to 24/7 broadcasts of popular shows like BAYWATCH, LET’S MAKE A DEAL, PROJECT RUNWAY, and THE PRICE IS RIGHT. They will also launch their ESCAPE TO THE COUNTRY broadcast channel in the U.K. and their THREE’S COMPANY broadcast channel in Canada.
“We are beyond excited to expand the Fremantle content offering on Pluto TV across international markets,” said Katrina Kowalski, senior vice president of international content and acquisitions for Pluto TV at Paramount. “Pluto TV’s mission to offer lean-back entertainment for fans around the world harnesses the spirit of content like ESCAPE TO THE COUNTRY and THREE’S COMPANY, which are perfect for people to gather to watch from the comfort of their living rooms.”
Paramount
Movieguide® previously reported on Paramount’s hopes to grow Pluto TV’s user base:
Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish recently shared his outlook on the increased focus on streaming.
Bakish oversees Paramount+ and Pluto TV, which he hope will eventually compete with the industry’s top streaming platforms like Netflix.
“We’ve always built this with the idea of building a real business and profitability in mind and will continue to make headway on that in 2023,” Bakish said in at the UBS Global TMT Conference.
“You think about using content across linear platforms and streaming that creates cost advantages, you think about marketing and leveraging platforms that creates cost advantages,” Bakish added of Paramount’s streaming strategy.
Bakish said that the company will not focus on streaming to the detriment of its blockbuster movies. The most recent example being the historic box office performance of Tom Cruise’s TOP GUN: MAVERICK, which did not appear on Paramount+ until a long theatrical stint.
As for profit, Bakish said that he hopes the company’s “multifaceted product” model for streaming content—which includes streaming platforms Paramount+ and Showtime, as well as Paramount Pictures, CBS, and ad-supported platform Pluto TV—will begin to turn a profit.