On-demand movie packs from NBC Universal, 20th Century Fox, Disney-ABC International Television and Eros International
Almost 80 per cent of major Hollywood output now available on mio TV
First Bollywood movie channel in the history of Singapore television
Singapore, 5 November 2007 -- Following in the footsteps of the success of mio TV’s on-demand services Sony PIX and PIX THRILLER, Singtel today announced new agreements with major movie studios NBC Universal, 20th Century Fox, Disney-ABC International Television and Eros International.
Each studio will offer a subscription-on-demand service offering a selection of between 15 and 28 movies each month for a fixed price of $12.84 (including GST) except for EROS Bollywood which costs $10.70 (including GST). Subscribers can choose to watch the movies whenever they want, as many times as they want throughout the month.
With these new service offerings, Singtel further reinforces its leading position in the pay TV market as the choice for movie aficionados.
“mio TV subscribers can look forward to more compelling content as we continue to seal deals with prominent players in the market,” said Low Ka Hoe, Director of mio TV and Content. “We are extremely pleased with the response that mio TV has received so far, with more and more people experiencing the joys of having a theatre-like experience right in their living rooms.
Mio TV is the only pay TV operator to offer true on-demand content, with an entire library of movies available at the touch of a button. It is also the first pay TV service in Singapore to bring on-demand HD movies to its customers. Fans of high-definition programming are now able to watch titles like “Big Fish”, “Peter Pan” and “Meet the Robinsons” in full crystal-clear glory.
“Our partnerships with these major film studios - NBC Universal, Sony, 20th Century Fox, Disney, and with even more to come - bring almost 80 per cent of all major Hollywood output into Singapore homes,” said Mr Low. “There is no reason why movie lovers should go anywhere else. On-demand movie channels – the first in Singapore and perhaps the region - offer fantastic value with each movie costing an average of less than $1.”
So Many Movies, So Little Time
PictureBox, an on-demand service from NBC Universal will launch on mio TV on November 16. This extremely popular service – also available in the UK and Poland – will offer 28 on-demand movies at any one time with key titles including “Johnny English”, “2 Fast 2 Furious”, “Blue Crush” and “8 Mile”. Seven titles will be refreshed weekly, ensuring that subscribers always have new flicks to enjoy from the comfort of their couch.
Subscribers to 20th Century Fox’s entertainment service can relive the memories with well-loved classics like “Home Alone”, “Edward Scissorhands”, “Poseidon Adventure”, “Romancing the Stone” and “Jewel of the Nile”.
Upcoming latest blockbusters from Fox will also be available on VoD. In 2008, customers can look forward to watching their favourite flicks like “Apocalypto”, “Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer”, “The Simpsons Movie” and “Live Free or Die Hard”.
Disney’s subscription on-demand channel – called The Film Factory – is now available on mio TV and features blockbuster titles such as “Armageddon”, “Air Force One”, “Pearl Harbor”, “Princess Diaries”, “Shanghai Knights” and “Signs”. This is the first time that Disney is offering such a service outside the US.
“We’re excited to be working with Singtel on the launch of our very first international on-demand movie channel, The Film Factory, bringing megahit movies to Singapore’s mio TV customers whenever they want them. The Film Factory is just another step in our commitment to letting as many people enjoy our content in flexible and legitimate ways,” commented Greg Johnson, Vice President of Sales at Disney-ABC International Television (Asia Pacific).
Customers who prefer to purchase individual movies will also be able to enjoy the latest blockbusters from Disney. “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End”, “Ratatouille” and “Wild Hogs” are just some of the titles that will soon be available for purchase from mio TV’s Video on Demand store.
To coincide with the Deepavali celebrations, Eros Bollywood will hit mio TV screens on 8 November. It is the first and only on-demand Bollywood movie channel on local TV in Singapore’s history of the goggle box. Viewers get to watch movies as quickly as three to four months after they are released in the cinemas. Titles include a mixture of the latest movies such as Salaam-E-Ishq, Cheeni Kum, Nishabd, Eklavya, Namastey London, Partner, as well as classic Bollywood favourites like Mother India, Devdas, Mughal-E-Azam, Sholay which are all subtitled in English.
“Not only do we have Hollywood, we also have Bollywood,” commented Mr Low. “We are very pleased to be introducing this channel to our customers, as we know that there is a demand for good quality ethnic programming.”
This subscription-based on-demand channel will have 15 movies at any one time and eight new titles will be refreshed each month. Viewers will get to watch the latest movies from their favourite mega stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai.
With the addition of these exciting new services, mio TV now has movies from four major Hollywood studios under its belt. This brings close to 80 per cent of major Hollywood output to its stable.
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About mio TV
mio TV is the innovative digital pay TV service offering from Singtel. Launched in July 2007, the service offers customers value and full flexibility to watch what they want, when they want. Currently, mio TV offers a total of 33 channels from a wide range of genres as well as Singapore’s largest range of video-on-demand titles and High Definition content.
Singtel is Asia 's leading communications group providing a portfolio of services including voice and data services over fixed, wireless and Internet platforms. Together with its regional partners, it serves over 136 million mobile customers in seven markets. For more information visit www.singtel.com/miotv
More information about mio TV can be found at www.singtel.com/miotv.
About Eros International plc
Eros International plc is an established global player in the fast-growing Indian media and entertainment arena. Being vertically integrated means that Eros not only produces and commissions films like studios but it also distributes and exploits films across formats globally via cinemas, home entertainment, television formats and new media.
Established in 1977, Eros International has three decades of market leadership in creating a global platform for Indian cinema. The company operates in over 50 countries with worldwide offices in India, UK, USA, Dubai, Australia, Fiji and Isle of Man. It has built a successful business model around the release of 30-40 new films every year and the exploitation of a film library containing more than 1,300 titles, making it one of the largest content owners in the business.
Global Distribution, Motion Pictures, Music, Home Entertainment, e-Television, New Media and Animation are the main Strategic Business Units of Eros.
Eros enters its 30th year in the business with the Vision of consolidating the fragmented industry, the Strategy of operating a vertically integrated business model.
About The Film Factory
The Film Factory brings you the very best in live action and animated feature films on-demand from Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Touchstone Pictures and Miramax Films. Enjoy critically-acclaimed, award-winning, box office successes like “Pearl Harbor”, “Armageddon”, “Evita”, “Enemy of the State”, “The English Patient”, “Pretty Woman” and more, whenever you want them! Film Factory is available in Singapore to mio TV customers.
About Twentieth Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox is a subsidiary of News Corporation. News Corporation’s diversified global operations in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the Pacific Basin include the production and distribution of motion pictures and television programming; television, satellite and cable broadcasting, the publication of newspapers, magazines and books; the production and distribution of promotional and advertising products and services; the development of digital broadcasting; the development of conditional access and subscriber management systems.
About Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures is a division of Universal Studios (www.universalstudios.com). Universal Studios is part of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Formed in May 2004 through the combining of NBC and Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, and world-renowned theme parks. NBC Universal is 80%-owned by General Electric, with 20% owned by Vivendi.
