ITV Studios – the production and distribution division of British broadcaster ITV – is collaborating with Samsung TV Plus to launch two new FAST channels across Europe. The rollout will begin in the UK but then progress to Italy, Germany and other markets in the region.
One of the channels is a ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ channel, which will air episodes round-the-clock from the popular U.S. Gordon Ramsay show. The other channel – Storylands – will “become the home for the best European drama” according to ITV Studios. Shows on the channel will be produced by labels which are part of ITV Studios and include dramas such as Norwegian legal series Aber Bergen, the period drama Un Village Français, and the procedural crime drama from the producers of Gomorrah, called Masantonio.
The move follows ITV Studios’ launch of four non-scripted YouTube channels last year – Our World, Our Life, Our Stories and Our Histories. The agreement will see Samsung TV Plus – Samsung’s free ad-supported app – broadcast content from the ITV Studios catalogue 24/7 across all Samsung Smart TVs made in 2016 and onwards, as well as select Galaxy devices.
Ruth Berry, Managing Director at ITV Studios Global Distribution, commented: “We are very excited to partner with Samsung TV Plus to launch FAST channels in EMEA. We have an amazing library of 90,000+ hours of IP and the FAST/AVOD space is a key strategic focus for ITV Studios as we look to provide global audiences with new ways to access some of our best-known scripted brands, formats and non-scripted entertainment content.”
Richard Jakeman, European Head of Business Development for Samsung said, “The growth of Samsung TV Plus has everything to do with the quality of the content. We are working hard to deliver the best content possible to our customers, wherever they are. The addition of Storylands by ITV Studios and Hell’s Kitchen will enforce our commitment to a wide variety of quality programming for everyone.”
The partnership represents a continuation of the relationship between ITV and Samsung TV Plus. Early last year, Samsung TV Plus became the first third-party publisher on ITV’s advanced advertising service, Planet V. The agreement allows media buyers to plan and buy Samsung TV Plus inventory via the ITV platform’s workflow.
