Close on the heels of its deals with BBC First and Warner Bros., OSN has signed a new and extended long-term deal with NBCUniversal International (NBCUI). OSN also announced exclusive lifetime rights to Turkish series Kosem Sultan, recently in a bid to offer the popular drama to the MENA audiences. The MENA pay TV and […]
Close on the heels of its deals with BBC First and Warner Bros., OSN has signed a new and extended long-term deal with NBCUniversal International (NBCUI). OSN also announced exclusive lifetime rights to Turkish series Kosem Sultan, recently in a bid to offer the popular drama to the MENA audiences.
The MENA pay TV and OTT market has seen a lot of activity in recent months with new entrants such as beIN Media Group and Netflix announcing their plans for the region. BeIN, known for its strong sports offering has now diversified its portfolio to claim a share in the entertainment domain. Last month, the network announced a partnership with Turner Broadcasting to bring Turners channels including Cartoon Network, which used to be a part of the OSN offering earlier.
David Butorac, Chief Executive Officer of OSN, said: The pay TV industry will be led by those who own the most compelling content, and OSN is dominating the space of original and exclusive programming through our long-term channel and content partnerships such as with NBCUniversal International, which truly opens a universe of unmatched content available now only for OSN subscribers.
The networks long-term deal with NBCUI gives it access to content from NBCUI and also consolidates OSNs industry position, adding to its growing portfolio of new channels and content partnerships.
The deal secures first pay window rights for OSN, in addition to exclusive over-the-top (OTT) content access on OSN Play, the award-winning digital platform that is free to subscribers, and GO, the fast-growing non-subscriber based online TV service.
NBCUniversal International owns blockbuster hits such as Minions, Furious 7 and Jurassic World and offers a robust TV portfolio with The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Late Night with Seth Meyers.
The new agreement also extends OSNs carriage agreement for CNBC.
Belinda Menendez, President, NBCUniversal International Distribution & Networks, commented: We are delighted to expand our presence in the Middle East and Northern Africa via a long-term agreement with OSN that, for subscribers, boasts new programming localised in Arabic, along with the launch of Syfy and also ensures that OSNs subscribers will continue to enjoy the programming on CNBC and our critically acclaimed TV series and films.
