Comcast and Paramount Global’s streaming joint venture Sky Showtime will replace a traditional cable TV movie package in one European country.
This week, the Netherlands-based digital cable service Ziggo announced it will drop its Movies & Series L and XL packages in favor of offering free access to Sky Showtime.
The move will impact around one million subscribers to Ziggo’s TV Max package, which offers linear and streaming video channels. Sky Showtime became available on Ziggo earlier this summer.
“This partnership marks a significant milestone for Ziggo and reinforces our commitment to delivering the best entertainment experience to our customers,” Robin Kroes, the executive director of consumer markets at Ziggo and its parent company, Vodafone, said in a statement. “By teaming up with Sky Showtime, we are enriching our TV and streaming platform and giving a large part of our customer base an even better offering of movies and series, as part of their Ziggo subscription.”
Sky Showtime debuted in a handful of European countries last September. The service marries the content library of Comcast’s Peacock streaming service and Paramount Global’s Paramount Plus, to include hit shows like “Spongebob Squarepants,” “The Office,” “Yellowstone” and “The Blacklist” alongside top films like “Jurassic Park,” “Top Gun” and “Minions.”
The service operates using the same technology as Peacock’s streaming service in the United States and other parts of Europe, with Paramount providing content and financial support. It is targeted primarily at countries where both Comcast and Paramount lack brand recognition or a traditional media presence (Comcast owns the Sky satellite service in several European countries, where Peacock and Paramount Plus are offered in place of Sky Showtime).
“Today marks the next stage in the expansion of that relationship, with SkyShowtime helping to power Ziggo’s TV offerings and providing real value to consumers with our premium entertainment offering,” Monty Sarhan, the CEO of Sky Showtime, said in a statement. “We are excited that even more subscribers in the Netherlands will have access to our incredible roster of big, new, and exclusive movies and series.”
Eligible TV Max customers will receive information on how to activate their free access to Sky Showtime over the coming weeks. Those with Ziggo’s TV Start and TV Complete packages can add Sky Showtime to their plans for €7 per month (about U.S. $7.45 per month).
