MTG signs multiple studio deals for Viasat

Scandinavian broadcaster Viasat has struck a number of output and volume deals with Hollywood studios including NBC Universal and Fox as well as a number of local partners.

The Modern Times Group-owned pan-regional broadcaster is aggressively ramping up its content spend with these new deals.

It has struck two deals with NBC Universal International Television Distribution. The first is an output deal that covers free TV rights across Sweden, Norway and Denmark for feature films as well as scripted and unscripted series. The agreement has been struck in partnership with public broadcasters SVT, NRK and DR and will see the companies share forthcoming NBC Universal titles.

NBC Universal’s TV titles include House, Grimm, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Downton Abbey as well forthcoming titles Chicago Fire, Matthew Perry’s Go On and The Mindy Project.

The second agreement is for the exclusive pay TV and subscription video-on-demand rights in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland for new and library feature films.

Viasat has also extended a multi-year deal with Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution for premium and library movie rights in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland. The company will now have the second pay television window for Fox movie content.

Separately, it has closed local deals with Nordisk Film and SF Film. The deal with Nordisk includes first-run pay TV movies in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland as well as free TV rights in Sweden and Denmark. Nordisk films include The Hunger Games, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2, Man on a Ledge.

The SF Film deal extends its agreement for exclusive pay TV rights in Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland for movies including Jägarna 2, Änglagård – Tredje gången gillt, I rymden finns inga känslor and The Stig-Helmer Story.

Hans-Holger Albrecht, president and CEO of MTG, said: “The signing of the agreements further solidifies our position as the leading premium content provider in the Nordic region, both via traditional linear pay TV channels and on-demand. Viasat Broadcasting has licensing agreements with six major content providers, which enables Viasat and Viaplay to offer a unique breadth of exclusive premium content and a wide range of popular library titles. The unrivalled range of movies and TV series, as well as the wide range of library content will ensure that we will continue to strengthen our position as the home of entertainment, both offline and online.”