German Outfits Come Together to Establish VOD Portal

BERLIN: A number of companies from the German media and production sector, including ZDF Enterprises, Beta Film and Telepool, have aligned to support the launch of a VOD portal, subject to approval of the German cartel office.

A total of 17 firms have combined to found Gold, an outfit based in Berlin that will run the as-yet-unnamed portal. Gold will be headed by a dual management team of general managers Antoine Schmidt-Roy, the head of online media and a member of the management of Studio Hamburg Distribution and marketing, and media exec Jochen Kröhne.

The service will feature the contents of all its partners. This programming will comprise 60 years of German TV history as well as German and international theatrical hits. The portal will be supported through pay-per-view fees as well as subscriptions and advertising. The name of the portal will be unveiled before launch, which is planned for later this year.