Close X
Saturday, November 23, 2024
ADVT 
Tech

Bell's CraveTV launches next week for $4 a month

Darpan News Desk, Canadian Press, 03 Dec, 2014 12:05 PM

    TORONTO — Bell's streaming competitor to Netflix and Shomi will launch to "TV lovers" next week at about half the price.

    But it requires a TV subscription with Bell, Eastlink or Telus Optik TV and isn't available to cord cutters.

    CraveTV will become available on Dec. 11 for $4 a month with access to more than 300 titles including "The Big Bang Theory," "Corner Gas," "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Entourage," "Homeland," "Orphan Black," "Seinfeld," "Sex and the City," "The Sopranos" and "The Wire."

    The content will be available through the TV providers' set-top boxes, at Cravetv.ca and on Apple and Android mobile devices.

    Bell Media president Kevin Crull said the company isn't contractually blocked from offering CraveTV to so-called cord cutters or cord nevers, who don't pay for a TV subscription.

    He didn't rule out offering the streaming service to those consumers down the road but said Bell wanted to focus on the 90 per cent of Canadians who do have TV subscriptions.

    "The 10 per cent that aren't TV subscribers, in a general sense, they're not TV lovers," Crull said in an interview.

    "We've worked hard to keep all of our options for the future open. I will tell you this industry is fast moving. But right now we think this is the smart way to make the product available."

    Bell plans to double the size of the CraveTV catalogue within 12 months and promises to stagger out new content every Friday.

    Rogers and Shaw recently launched the streaming product Shomi for $9 a month to their customers, although it does not require a TV subscription.

    Netflix currently charges $8 a month but plans to raise its price for new customers by $1 monthly.

    Crull said CraveTV wasn't deliberately set at half the price of Netflix but the company did want it to stand out alongside competitors.

    "We set out to design a differentiated product ... we really wanted our pricing to be differentiated and our distribution to be differentiated," he said.

    "I think that Canadians are going to find CraveTV is a fantastic value and $4 is the right price point for this content."

    He also predicted CraveTV would be "profoundly impactful" for Bell and would become an evolving platform of content in the years ahead.

    "There's no question that (Internet-based) interfaces — whether it's apps or smart TVs or gaming consoles — are only going to grow. I think on-demand viewing is only going to grow. And I think ... there may be offshoots of CraveTV that will grow in the future," he said.

    "It is a foundation for a lot of fun things coming down the road."

    He also predicted that other TV providers, including Rogers and Shaw, would soon offer CraveTV.

    "We've designed a product and a service and a business model that are very friendly and very supportive of our distribution partners, so I think that's one reason they're going to want to carry this product," Crull said.

    "And there's going to be a lot of demand from their customers. We're going to promote the heck out of this, we're going to activate what we call the Bell Media megaphone."

    MORE Tech ARTICLES

    Microsoft phones with Opera browser to hit market early next year

    Microsoft phones with Opera browser to hit market early next year
     Microsoft is likely to launch smartphones with Opera Mini as default browser from early next year, an official of the browser firm said Wednesday.

    Microsoft phones with Opera browser to hit market early next year

    Liquid Metal Batteries To Herald New Future

    Liquid Metal Batteries To Herald New Future
    Researchers have improved a liquid battery system that could enable renewable energy resources to compete with conventional power plants.

    Liquid Metal Batteries To Herald New Future

    Physicists Verify Einstein's Time-dilation Theory

    Physicists Verify Einstein's Time-dilation Theory
    Do you believe that a person travelling in a high-speed rocket would age more slowly than people back on Earth?

    Physicists Verify Einstein's Time-dilation Theory

    An App That Helps You Cuddle Up To Strangers

    An App That Helps You Cuddle Up To Strangers
    Are you looking for a quick platonic cuddle? Then download the new app called Cuddlr - a cross between apps like Grindr and Tinder.

    An App That Helps You Cuddle Up To Strangers

    Facebook says won't miss out on key stories for its users

    Facebook says won't miss out on key stories for its users
    The social networking site Facebook is updating its news feed to feature right content at the right time, so that users do not miss out on key stories.

    Facebook says won't miss out on key stories for its users

    What? Newton Didn't Give Second Law Of Motion, Says New Paper

    What? Newton Didn't Give Second Law Of Motion, Says New Paper
    In Isaac Newton's time, the terms "acceleration" and "second derivative" did not exist, so he could not have deduced F=ma, the second law of motion. This has been unscientifically credited to Newton, says a research paper.

    What? Newton Didn't Give Second Law Of Motion, Says New Paper