MIPTV – SPI International closed a major acquisition deal with NBCUniversal for the FilmBox Premium movie channel in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The company announced during MIPTV that they are preparing to launch SPI’s first linear Ultra HD TV channel called 4K FunBox UHD while producing own 4K content and expanding the current Ultra HD catalogue with new acquisitions to be finalised during the market in Cannes.
Close to one hundred titles including hot first run features will boost programming on the FilmBox Premium channel in the Czech Republic and Slovakia thanks to a new acquisition deal signed by SPI International with NBCUniversal.
Among the movies included in this deal are the 2013 fantasy adventure 47 Ronin with Keanu Reeves, All Is Lost, an action drama featuring Robert Redford as well as Fast and Furious 6, from the world-famous high octane series starring the late Paul Walker. Younger audiences will enjoy Despicable Me 2, the animated comedy nominated for three Oscars, Golden Globes and BAFTA Awards. Other first run features will include Identity Thief with Melissa McCarthy and Oblivion, an action film starring the Hollywood superstars Tom Cruise and Morgan Freeman. In addition to the first run features FilmBox will present a number of mega hits from the past including Apollo 13 with Tom Hanks, Notting Hill starring Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant, Jim Carrey’s Liar Liar and Shakespeare in Love with the unforgettable Gwyneth Paltrow.
SPI International amassed more than 200 hours of 4K content in the first quarter of 2015. “4K content is one of our highest priorities for future development,” said Berk Uziyel, the Executive Director of Filmbox International Ltd. “Our new Ultra HD library will initially offer very diverse content such as visually stunning nature documentaries, breathtaking videos of San Francisco skyline and eye-popping CG animations,” Berk Uziyel adds. SPI is making the newly acquired content available through its VOD platform FilmBox Live and also on 4K FunBox UHD, a linear TV channel which is currently under development.
Delivering content in Ultra HD quality to end-users is another major undertaking on the part of SPI. The company launched “Kino LG 4K” in Poland, a pilot project that allowed SPI to implement a super-efficient compression technology making Ultra HD quality streaming available to Internet users with regular residential Internet connection.
SPI has also engaged in the production of native 4K content, starting with the live recordings of MMA events. The company is exploring other types of entertainment and plans to produce native Ultra HD programming featuring music as well as other entertainment shows.
