Nine Entertainment Co’s Subscription VOD service plans to commission local production for the platform.
Mike Sneesby, CEO of Nine’s StreamCo, tells IF that his team is speaking with the production community about commissioning local productions.
While he’s not ready to name any projects, he says “we will commission local production” as part of the platform’s mission to provide “first run and exclusive content.”
The branding, launch date and deals with US studios and local distributors are being kept under wraps. The brand will probably be unveiled 6-8 weeks from the launch.
Nine has flagged the monthly fee for unlimited streaming of recently released movies, library films and TV content will be $10.
Netflix is expected to enter the Australian market, possibly in May or June next year. As IF has reported, two Netflix acquisition reps are in Sydney this week to meet with the major distributors.
“We expect to launch in a very competitive market,” says Sneesby, who previously was CEO of the Microsoft/Nine Entertainment e-commerce joint venture Cudo and is a former director of corporate strategy and business development at ninemsn.