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MUMBAI:
Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) and Starz have inked a new,
multi-year agreement that extends their exclusive first-run
output premium pay TV deal.
As
a result, Starz will have the exclusive pay television rights
to Sony Pictures' theatrical releases through 2021. The previous
agreement between the two companies had covered motion pictures
released theatrically through 2016.
Commencing
with 2005 theatrical releases, Starz has been the exclusive
first-run pay television home for the exhibition of Sony Pictures'
films including titles from Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures
Classics, TriStar, and Screen Gems.
Starz
had recently renewed its exclusive long-term licensing agreement
with Disney-ABC Domestic Television, a division of The Walt
Disney Company, for theatrical releases from The Walt Disney
Studios through 2015.
The
new SPE-Starz agreement provides movie content for all Starz
platforms including its linear STARZ and ENCORE channels in
standard definition and HD, subscription VOD services in standard
definition, HD On Demand and 3D On Demand, and online streaming
services, including the recently launched Starz Play and Encore
Play.
Big,
hit Sony titles coming in 2013 exclusively on pay television
to the STARZ channels and services include: The Amazing Spider-Man,
21 Jump Street, Zero Dark Thirty, The Vow, Men In Black 3,
and Resident Evil: Retribution.
"Starz
and Encore subscribers have enjoyed the consistently stellar
theatrical product from Sony, and we are thrilled to extend
our exclusive partnership into the next decade," said
Starz CEO Chris Albrecht.
"Starz
will continue to offer the richest premium TV viewing experience
for our subscribers and distributors for years to come thanks
to Starz' growing original programming slate, along with the
robust lineup of new blockbuster Sony releases and our deep
movie library."
"Starz
has been a terrific partner and we are excited to be extending
our relationship with them through the 2021 slate," said
SPT President, U.S. John Weiser.
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