Target to Launch Video Streaming Service By Oct. 1
By Phillip Swann
TVPredictions.com
http://www.tvpredictions.com/target091113.htm
Washington, D.C. (September 11, 2013)-- /This is an update of our
earlier coverage of new Internet TV services looking to challenge Netflix.
/
Target is planning to launch a video streaming service on or before
October 1 with more than 30,000 titles available for purchase or rental,
writes Variety.
It was reported earlier this month that Target was planning to introduce
a streaming competitor to Netflix, Hulu, Amazon and the Walmart-owned
Vudu. But the launch date was unknown and the catalog of titles was
uncertain.
Anne Stanchfield, Target's divisional merchandising manager for
entertainment, tells Variety that the company doesn't think it's too
late to enter the streaming category, which is getting increasingly
crowded. She says many Americans have yet to adopt digital entertainment
services.
Variety writes that Target has content agreements with several major
studios including Disney, Paramount, Sony, Fox, Warner Bros., Universal
and Lionsgate. Networks that have signed on include HBO, ABC, AMC, Fox,
NBC and FX.
Unlike Hulu and Netflix, Target Ticket, as the service will be known as,
will offer shows and movies on a pay-per-view basis rather than as a
monthly subscription. This would be similar to what the Walmart-owned
Vudu practices.
However, Target believes its next-day programming offering will be a
market differentiator. Hulu Plus now offers programs the day after they
originally air on a network, but as part of a monthly subscription, not
as a pay-per-view offering.
Variety says that Target Ticket will be offered at TargetTicket.com and
that the company hopes to have an app for the service on all devices by
the end of 2014. At first, it will be available on PCs, Macs, Microsoft
Xbox consoles, Apple iOS and Android devices, Roku set-tops and Samsung
connected-TV devices, the publication adds.
The New York Post writes that Target has been testing the service by
inviting consumers to join *here*
<http://www.targetticket.com/home/premium>. The invitation says Target
Ticket will provide streaming to 15,000 titles including next-day shows,
new movie releases and classic films.
The New York Post writes that Target Ticket movies would cost anywhere
from $13-15 to own a digital copy or $4-5 to rent a movie.
If Target enters the streaming field, it will join Netflix, Vudu, Hulu,
Verizon and Amazon. Plus, Sony, Intel and possibly Apple are expected to
launch Netflix challengers in the coming months.
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