SYDNEY: Quickflix (ASX: QFX), Australia’s leading online movie rental subscription company, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Sony Computer Entertainment to stream its subscription movie service to PlayStation®3 (PS3™) starting later this year.
Announcing the deal, Quickflix Chief Executive Officer Chris Taylor said: “Having entered a streaming agreement for Sony Bravia in July we’re very excited to now extend the partnership to PlayStation via its game console platform.
“Over 1.3 million Australian consumers who own an internet connectable PlayStation 3 will have access to Quickflix’s on demand movie streaming service. This is a significant moment in the evolution of IPTV delivered entertainment in Australia and a major development for our company,” Mr Taylor said.
Globally, PlayStation 3 is the game console platform most consumers connect to their TV screen at home to stream movies. In the US1 and UK, PlayStation 3 is estimated to account for over 30 percent of movie streaming by the leading online movie subscription providers in those countries.
The Quickflix movie streaming service on PlayStation 3 will provide unlimited viewing of movies from a constantly changing catalogue, complementing its online DVD and Blu-Ray rental by mail service which provides unlimited rentals each month from Australia’s largest movie and TV series library that features more than 50,000 titles.
According to Quickflix Founder and Executive Chairman Stephen Langsford, connected devices are key to the company’s growth strategy. “Combined with our rapidly growing DVD-by-mail business the PlayStation 3 deal strategically positions Quickflix to become the most popular movie streaming service in Australia,” Mr Langsford said.
Sony Computer Entertainment Australia & New Zealand Managing Director Michael Ephraim said: “This exciting agreement with Quickflix will further enhance PS3’s already strong entertainment on demand credentials across TV, games, music and now, an even larger range of movie options. If you love games, and your family loves movies, quite simply there is no better choice of device for your home than PlayStation 3, which is also one of the most highly awarded Blu-Ray players.”
The Quickflix movie subscription service will feature on the PlayStation 3 Xross media bar (XMB) interface to enable viewers to watch movies instantly. The console also features a DVD Blu-ray player, 3D playback capability and two existing on demand services: PlayStation Network Video Delivery Service (PSN VDS) and MUBI.