Sony Pictures Television announced a partnership with CSS Entertainment to develop its Crackle ad-supported VOD service further. Their new streaming video joint venture will be branded Crackle Plus.
SPT’s contributions to the joint venture include Crackle’s US assets including the Crackle brand, its monthly active users and its ad rep business. SPT and the joint venture will also enter into a license agreement for rights to popular TV series and movies from the Sony Pictures Entertainment library. In addition, New Media Services, a subsidiary of Sony Electronics, will provide the technology back-end services for the newly formed joint venture. Ownership of Crackle’s original content library will be retained by SPT but will be made available for licensing to the joint venture.CSS Entertainment plans to include in the joint venture six owned and operated AVOD networks: Popcornflix, Truli, Popcornflix Kids, Popcornflix Comedy, Frightpix, and Espanolflix, and the subscription video-on-demand platform Pivotshare.
The new service will have a combined audience of nearly 10 million monthly active users on its networks, as well as millions of additional users from its ad rep business, positioning it as one of the largest AVOD platforms in the US. Content available includes more than 38,500 hours of programming and more than 90 content partnerships
CSS Entertainment will own the majority interest in the joint venture. Additionally, SPT will receive 4 million five-year warrants to purchase Class A common stock of CSS Entertainment at various prices. The addition of the Crackle assets is expected to more than double CSS Entertainment’s overall revenue and add meaningful EBITDA.
Further financial details of the partnership were not disclosed. CSS said the group plans "to build Crackle Plus aggressively and profitably through organic growth and, potentially, acquisitions".
