OTT SVoD service Wuaki.tv launches in UK, more countries to follow

Japanese e-commerce giant Rakutin-owned over-the-top subscription video-on-demand service Wuaki.tv has launched in the UK following what it said was a successful beta trial.

Wuaki.tv said the UK launch would be followed by expansion to other European countries in 2015.

The service launched in the UK in beta in June, and Wuaki.tv says it has attraced “tens of thousands” of new customers so far. The service, which includes movies and TV shows from Hollywood studios and UK distributors, has been extended over the summer to stream content to a range of devices, including PCs and laptops, tablets, Samsung smartTVs and through the Xbox Live service. Wuaki.tv said it would also be adding more devices before the end of the year.
Wuaki.tv offers what it describes as a “hybrid model”, providing a choice between à la carte rental, download-to-own or a monthly subscription to the Wuaki Selection service, which offers a selection of movie and TV content for £4.99 (€5.93) a month.

New users can trial the Wuaki Selection service for free for the first month. Newly released titles available to rent and purchase are priced individually.

The launch will be accompanied by a TV advertising campaign featuring Dick Fosbury, the first high jump athlete to ump backward, with the service positioning itself as a similar “rules changer” for the TV industry.

“Our unique hybrid model is what really sets us apart, along with the quality of the content we programme every week in the Wuaki “Selection” said Jacinto Roca, founder and CEO of Wuaki.tv. “For us, quality if vitally important. We started Wuaki.tv with a clear objective to bring quality content to all households in an easy and affordable way. We really want to be a game changer for this industry, and try to reinvent the rules to better accommodate what customers really want from an on-line video service.”

Roca said the service, which initially launched in Spain, would be “fully launched in main European countries, in addition to the UK and Spain, by 2015”.