Rakuten TV announced today the launch of a new SVOD service within the platform, STARZPLAY; the international premium streaming service from STARZ that offers exclusive access to original series, acclaimed acquired content and a blockbuster movie library featuring thousands of titles. This exciting partnership consolidates Rakuten TV’s growth across Europe, with its recent launches of other third-party channels, allowing users to find a wide range of entertainment content just one click away. STARZPLAY, will now be accessible to millions of households in Europe thanks to the Rakuten TV pre-installed app on Smart TVs and its branded remote control across the main TV manufacturers, allowing users direct access to the platform.
Rakuten TV users from Spain, UK, Italy, France and Germany will now have the chance to enjoy this new premium SVOD service, starting with a free trial and subscribing to the service for only £4.99 a month. The content will be available within the Rakuten TV app on Smart TVs, web and mobile devices.
STARZPLAY will provide Rakuten TV users with access to an exclusive line-up of premium programming of movies and TV series, including The Great; the upcoming genre-bending series from Oscar®-nominated writer Tony McNamara (The Favourite), starring Elle Fanning (Maleficent, Mary Shelley) and Nicholas Hoult (X-Men, Tolkien), which premieres on June 18th across the streaming service. The series is a satirical, comedic drama about the rise of Catherine the Great from outsider to the longest reigning female ruler in Russia’s history and is aimed to be one of the surprises of the season.
At launch, the new gritty crime series from Jerry Bruckheimer, Hightown, will be available on the platform, and subscribers can look forward to the highly-anticipated Starz Original series Power Book II: Ghost starring Oscar®-nominee Mary J. Blige. Additionally, curated content such as psychological horror series Castle Rock from Stephen King and J.J. Abrams starring Lizzy Caplan and Oscar®-winner Tim Robbins, award-winning comedy-drama series Ramy and The Act starring Academy Award® Winner Patricia Arquette and Joey King will be other highlighted titles on Rakuten TV.
Teresa López, European Content Director at Rakuten TV, said: “STARZPLAY will allow us to enrich our current proposition providing an always more varied and extensive offer within the platform, we are very excited about this new launch. At Rakuten TV we are eager to continue reinforcing our content offer in order to provide the best quality content and a complete experience to our users just one click away.”
“This multi-territory partnership creates an exciting opportunity for STARZPLAY to expand our reach in the marketplace and introduce new audiences to our vast library of compelling series and films,” said Superna Kalle, Executive Vice President, International Digital Networks for Starz. “We look forward to deepening our relationship with European viewers through Rakuten TV who shares our commitment to providing audiences with premium content paired with a user-friendly experience.”
