SPI/FilmBox acquires documentary series “Culinary Heights at Ikarus” from Red Bull Media House for its 4K and HD channels including FunBox UHD. Through the deal, SPI will also be able to sublicense the series to third parties in select territories.
SPI/FilmBox and globally distributed multi-platform media company Red Bull Media House have inked their second content acquisition deal for FunBox UHD, SPI’s general entertainment channel which presents visually-groundbreaking content devoted to nature, travel and lifestyle in native Ultra HD. The deal grants SPI both the broadcast rights to the exhilarating series “Culinary Heights at Ikarus” (12x50’) on their 4K & HD channels and its sublicensing rights to third parties in select territories.
“We are delighted to be partnering with Red Bull Media House once again to expand our portfolio of dynamic programming with incredible visual quality,” said Revi Benshoshan, Director of Acquisitions at SPI International. “The addition of Culinary Heightsat Ikarus to SPI’s portfolio reflects our commitment to providing our audiences with a diverse range of quality programming to suit different tastes,” continued Benshoshan.
“Culinary Heights at Ikarus” offers a unique glimpse into the world of high-end cuisine. Each month at Salzburg’s two Michelin-starred Restaurant Ikarus, a different top international chef creates the menu. For this globally unique concept, Hangar-7 executive chef Martin Klein visits the cream of the crop, takes a look behind the scenes of haute cuisine, and is let in on some exciting culinary secrets. The series provides an interesting portrait of each guest chef, their culinary philosophy, and the food culture of their country.
SPI had previously acquired the adventure series “The Rocky Mountains Traverse” from Red Bull Media House, which follows two adventurers on the longest paragliding air journey ever accomplished. For their 35 days in the air, the paragliding duo was nominated as the National Geographic Adventurers of the Year and the film was also a part of the Banff Mountain Film Festival 2015.
About SPI International
SPI International is a global media company operating 42 television channels on six continents. FilmBox being its flagship channel, SPI is one of the biggest aggregators of native Ultra HD content in the world. Working with over 700 operators worldwide, SPI uses state of the art technology providing its 65 million subscribers with access to SPI’s linear and on-demand content including live streaming of UHD programming and FilmBox channels on any Internet-connected device via major global streaming media players as well as local OTT providers.
SPI recently added to its portfolio Film1 premium movie services in the Netherlands, including four movie channels and digital services. For over 25 years, SPI International has been a leading distributor of theatrical films and television programming in the international market. SPI’s solid alliances with major license suppliers provide compelling content, with strong recognition and high demand.
About Red Bull Media House
Red Bull Media House is an award-winning, globally distributed multi-platform media company on a mission to inspire with “beyond the ordinary” stories – both direct-to-consumer and through partnerships. With a focus on sports, culture and lifestyle content, Red Bull Media House offers a wide range of premium media products across TV, mobile, digital, audio and print. Red Bull Media House produces and licenses a broad selection of global live broadcast events, compelling and inspirational local storytelling with original short and long-form programming as well as feature films from around the world.
SPI International and StarTimes have expanded their distribution agreement to include two more channels from SPI’s portfolio: Timeless Drama Channel (TDC) and Gametoon. The channels will be available to StarTimes subscribers starting in May.
SPI/FilmBox and StarTimes, one of Africa’s leading digital TV operators have brought the first global Turkish drama channel Timeless Drama Channel (TDC) and SPI’s gaming channel Gametoon to Africa. The agreement builds on the distribution of Filmbox Africa and Fashionbox on StarTimes and makes two of SPI’s most in-demand channels available to StarTimes subscribers from 1st May. Gametoon and TDC will be broadcast in English and Turkish, respectively, while the latter will have English subtitles.
“Timeless DramaChannel(TDC) is one of our fastest growing channels due to a global affinity for Turkish dramas,” said Georgina Twiss, MD Western Europe & Africa at SPI International. “Providing audiences with a diverse collection of high-quality content is a shared mission with our partner StarTimes, and we can’t wait to introduce the world of TDC to African audiences. SPI has an eye for new trends in the market, as with TDC, Gametoon has also gained huge popularity within the community and I am sure that StarTimes subscribers will enjoy our exclusive content,” continued Twiss.
Launched in April 2019 as SPI International’s premium Turkish drama channel, Timeless Drama Channel (TDC) has proven to be a massive global success. Currently reaching over 5 million homes in 15 countries, the channel features over 600 hours of popular and critically acclaimed dramas such as: Karadayi, Black Money Love, 20 Minutes, Kurt Seyit & Shura, Moms and Mothers, Red Scarf, Five Brothers, The End and The 8th Day.
Gametoon is a revolutionary channel created by true gaming and esports enthusiasts and features game reviews, esports tournaments, and exclusive game walkthroughs and sessions from popular streamers with a large fan-base, such as Dan Gheesling, Bifuteki, Lothar and many more.
“We are delighted to bring Timeless Drama Channel (TDC) and Gametoon to our viewers. It demonstrates our consistent commitment to provide access to premium content to our subscribers. They have been huge fans of telenovelas and I am sure they will love TDC’s Turkish dramas. And Esports have been booming in Africa so Gametoon has great potential in Africa,” commented Lily Meng, the Head of StarTimes Media Division.
StarTimes currently carries two other versatile channels from SPI’s expansive portfolio: Movie channel FilmBox Africa offers over 300 premiere titles every year, and FashionBox provides highly entertaining content on fashion trends and all things style.
About SPI International
SPI International is a global media company operating 40 television channels on six continents. FilmBox being its flagship channel, SPI is one of the biggest aggregators of native Ultra HD content in the world. Working with over 1,400 operators worldwide, SPI uses state of the art technology providing its 65 million subscribers with access to SPI’s linear and on-demand content including live streaming of UHD programming and FilmBox channels on any Internet-connected device via major global streaming media players as well as local OTT providers.
SPI recently added to its portfolio Film1 premium movie services in the Netherlands, including four movie channels and digital services. For over 25 years, SPI International has been a leading distributor of theatrical films and television programming in the international market. SPI’s solid alliances with major license suppliers provide compelling content, with strong recognition and high demand.
About StarTimes
StarTimes is the leading digital TV operator in Africa, serving 13 million DVB subscribers and 20 million OTT users with a signal covering the whole continent and a massive distribution network of 170+ brand halls and 30,000+ distributors in 30+ countries. StarTimes owns a featured content platform, with 600 authorized channels consisting of news, movies, series, sports, entertainment, children's programs, etc. The company's vision is "To ensure that every African family can access, afford, watch and share the beauty of digital TV".
SPI/FilmBox and Bulsatcom have inked a strategic channel distribution agreement to bring Timeless Drama Channel (TDC) to Bulgaria. Four additional channels from the SPI/FilmBox portfolio will also be available through Bulsatcom’s DTH platform.
SPI/FilmBox announced that Timeless Drama Channel (TDC), the first global Turkish drama channel, will now be offered in Bulgaria through a strategic partnership with Bulgaria’s largest TV operator, Bulsatcom, via the operator’s DTH and IPTV platforms. Apart from TDC, four additional channels - FilmBox Plus HD, FilmBox Extra HD, DocuBoxHD and FightBoxHD - from SPI/FilmBox’s diverse suite of channels, will be made available on Bulsatcom’s DTH platform. The deal also marks a three-year extension for the distribution rights of the channels across all platforms.
“We are delighted to announce that we have renewed and greatly expanded our partnership with Bulsatcom to include TDC and four more of our sought-after channels on their DTH platform in Bulgaria,” said Murat Muratoğlu, Head of Distribution at SPI International. “We are excited to witness the success of TDC across the globe and we are confident that the Bulgarian audience will also enjoy the high-quality content offered on the channel,” continued Muratoğlu.
Timeless Drama Channel(TDC) is SPI/FilmBox’s premium Turkish drama channel and offers over 600 hours of quality Turkish programming featuring well-known actors such as, International Emmy Award nominee Engin Akyürek, Kıvanç Tatlıtuğ, Bergüzar Korel, Farah Zeynep Abdullah, Kenan İmirzalıoğlu and Tuba Büyüküstün. One of the fastest growing drama genre channels in the world, TDC now reaches 5 million homes in 14 countries and continues to expand its footprint across the globe.
"We, at Bulsatcom, are very happy to be the first in Bulgaria to introduce Timeless Drama Channel, a channel with premium content, catering to drama and romantic series fans. We are confident that the incredible success of the channel in the neighboring countries will be replicated also in Bulgaria. The partnership with SPI is part of our commitment to expanding our portfolio of TV channels, especially across the movie genre. It resonates with our strategy to deliver rich and diversified content portfolio, catering to the widest variety of viewership tastes," said Stanislav Georgiev, Bulsatcom's Chief Executive Officer.
“The launch of TDC coincides with the introduction of an additional satellite transponder on Bulsatcom’s DTH service. We are now able to add 17 new exciting channels from multiple genres as well as improve the picture quality. We are pleased to demonstrate to our customers that Bulsatcom is now actively enriching the channels portfolio, in a pursuit to achieve better viewership experience,” continued Georgiev.
Bulsatcom’s IPTV service carries three movie channels FilmBox Extra, FilmBox Plus and FilmBox Arthouse, and an extensive array of unique thematic channels from the SPI/FilmBox portfolio.
Some of the thematic channels featured on Bulsatcom IPTV are FightBox which broadcasts some of the most electrifying combat sports live events and multi-discipline mixed martial arts coverage from all over the world; Fast&FunBox offers action-packed programming dedicated to adrenaline sports; FilmBox Extra is one of SPI’s premium movie channels featuring Hollywood blockbusters, European films and popular movies; DocuBox delivers a collection of award-winning documentaries about different cultures and the wonders of our world; FashionBox provides highly entertaining content on fashion trends and all things style, and 360 TuneBox presents new music every week with today’s emerging artists. The line-up also includes Erox and Eroxxx for adult audiences.
About SPI International
SPI International is a global media company operating 40 television channels on six continents. FilmBox being its flagship channel, SPI is one of the biggest aggregators of native Ultra HD content in the world. Working with over 1,400 operators worldwide, SPI uses state of the art technology providing its 65 million subscribers with access to SPI’s linear and on-demand content including live streaming of UHD programming and FilmBox channels on any Internet-connected device via major global streaming media players as well as local OTT providers. SPI recently added to its portfolio Film1 premium movie services in the Netherlands, including four movie channels and digital services.
For over 25 years, SPI International has been a leading distributor of theatrical films and television programming in the international market. SPI’s solid alliances with major license suppliers provide compelling content, with strong recognition and high demand.
About Bulsatcom
Bulsatcom EAD is the largest Pay TV operator in Bulgaria, with a leading position in offering satellite TV services and among the leaders in IPTV and TV Everywhere offers. A combined portfolio with high speed optical fibre internet services places Bulsatcom among the top 3 TV & ISP companies in the country.
Currently, Bulsatcom broadcasts over 250 channels, of which over 110 in HD format and over 5 in 4K ULTRA HD format. Bulsatcom maintains a rich list of exclusive thematic channels, among which Hobby TV, Hobby HD TV, Hobby Lov, TV+, Sport+ and many others.
SPI/FilmBox and 2BENAMED have signed an agreement, which renders the latter the distributor of SPI’s specially curated SVOD packages and localized linear channels in Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay
SPI/FilmBox and 2BENAMED announced that they have reached a strategic alliance centering on SPI’s SVOD packages and its localized linear channels. The deal grants 2BENAMED distribution rights to SPI’s VOD packages and localized linear channels in Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay. The three SVOD packages included in the deal feature on-demand content from some of SPI/FilmBox’s most riveting channels and are specially curated to fit the different tastes and needs of the Latin American audience.
“We are very excited to be working with Edgar Spielmann and his team at 2BENAMED to bring our content, linear channels, and digital products to the Southern Cone market. We believe our motto 'Home of Great Entertainment' will be a great fit for the market to cover the many needs of ever-growing consumer tastes,” said Berkin Ecevit, Sales & Business Development Director at SPI International.
THE VOD packages included in the deal are as follows: The Adrenaline Box package targets audiences of ages 18 through 50 and offers hours of exciting content from SPI’s Fast&FunBox, FightBox, Gametoon and 360TuneBox channels such as, adrenaline sports programming, multi-discipline mixed martial arts coverage from all over the world, gaming and esports tournaments and live concerts from the hottest new artists.
The Family Box package features hundreds of hours of great content fit for all ages from SPI’s FilmBox Arthouse, DocuBox and FunBoxUHD channels including; world cinema classics, award-winning documentaries and visually-groundbreaking entertainment programming.
Lastly, Erox Box package features a vast selection of erotic movies from leading adult film studios.
“At 2BENAMED we are dedicated to creating and increasing value to our media clients. This alliance with SPI International will allow us to bring their highly attractive and competitive content portfolio to our media clients in an innovative way. These three SVOD packages have been specially designed for the capabilities and needs of our media clients in Latin America and their always demanding consumers” said Edgar Spielmann, Managing Partner at 2BENAMED.
The deal will cover the distribution of the three aforementioned SVOD packages and SPI’s localized linear channels to platforms in Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay.
About SPI International
SPI International is a global media company operating 40 television channels on six continents. With FilmBox as its flagship channel, SPI is one of the biggest aggregators of native Ultra HD content in the world. Working with over 1,400 operators worldwide, SPI uses state of the art technology providing its 65 million subscribers with access to SPI’s linear and on-demand content including live streaming of UHD programming and FilmBox channels on any Internet-connected device via major global streaming media players as well as local OTT providers. SPI recently added to its portfolio Film1 premium movie services in the Netherlands, including four movie channels and digital services.
For over 25 years, SPI International has been a leading distributor of theatrical films and television programming in the international market. SPI’s solid alliances with major license suppliers provide compelling content, with strong recognition and high demand.
About 2BENAMED www.2benamed.com
2BENAMED is a company launched in 2019 to create and increase value in the Media Industry through three categories of services.
Consumer Media, supporting media organizations with a consumer centric approach to achieve long term subscription value through either a direct to consumer relationship or via traditional distribution channels.
B2B Media, distributing to media, telcos and retail companies high end content, proven products and solutions to positively impact bottom line.
Sports Hub+, a system (platform and business model) that allows right holders to monetize the consumer experience and life cycle of sports fans thru management, visualization and distribution of highly concurrent events with reduced latency, high security standards and a set of user relationship management processes that increases adoption, engagement and usage while reducing churn.
