This article was published on April 4, 2012

Disney comes to Blinkbox in UK and Ireland, streaming many titles from the same day as DVD releases


Disney comes to Blinkbox in UK and Ireland, streaming many titles from the same day as DVD releases

Following the news last week that Disney UK & Ireland has partnered with Google to provide movies via YouTube and Google Play, the entertainment giant has now signed a deal with UK online film service, Blinkbox.

Film and TV fans will be able to buy or rent the latest titles straight to their laptops, tablets or smart TVs and many releases will be attainable on the same day they appear on DVD.

The range of titles, as you would expect from Disney, is appealing and broad. Expect to access children’s favourites like The Muppets, Toy Story, Aladdin and Mary Poppins as well as more grown-up TV dramas like Lost, Grey’s Anatomy and Brothers and Sisters.

Michael Comish, CEO and co-founder of Blinkbox is pleased to be able to offer even more popular titles on the service. He said :

“We are excited to be working with Disney to bring even more current and classic entertainment instantly to our Blinkbox customers, from movies to quality US TV dramas.

This is the latest in a long line of deals with top Studios ensuring that Blinkbox offer the latest releases the same day as DVD.

To put it in to context, last week Blinkbox had 35 of the top 40 latest movie releases available to watch instantly.

At blinkbox we focus on the highest quality movie experience with all the latest titles available for our customers to enjoy any time, anywhere without being tied into a subscription.”

The deal also helps Disney UK & Ireland continue to reach an ever-growing online audience of fans. The expectation now is that more entertainment options should be available in high quality streaming or to download, especially following the success of sites like the BBC’s iPlayer and Channel 4’s 4oD.

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Catherine Powell, senior vice president and general manager of Media Distribution at The Walt Disney Company EMEA added:

“Working with innovative platforms such as Blinkbox, we are committed to offering our must-see entertainment to consumers in ever-more easily accessible, flexible ways.

From classic Disney films, through to cutting-edge ABC Studios TV drama, this selection provides a broad choice for every member of the family.”

Competition for your eyeballs

The latest deal expands Blinkbox’s catalogue of over 10,000 films from existing partnerships with major studios including Warner Bros, Paramount, Sony Pictures, 20th Century Fox and Universal, plus deals with over 40 other programming providers.

One of the appealing aspects of Blinkbox is how they arrange payment for access to entertainment. There’s no subscription and you only pay for the things you want to watch and not the things you don’t.

Entertainment on demand is really heating up in the UK. Recently the BBC launched iPlayer for the Xbox, Netflix landed on the shores of the UK and Ireland in January and LoveFilm opened up on Android late last year. Let’s hope that the UK’s bandwidth can cope with the amount of film and television that Brits look set to haul though during the rest of this year.

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