Warner Bros., HBO in Multi-Year French Pay-TV Deal

April 7, 2008 World Screen

CANNES, April 7: Warner Bros. International
Television Distribution (WBITD) and HBO, both Time Warner subsidiaries, have
inked a multi-year deal to be the initial suppliers of programming to France
Telecom Orange’s new multiplatform pay-TV service.

Under the terms of the deal, a variety of
programming from both companies will be made available across a number of
platforms. From WBITD, Orange has acquired the rights to all of Warner Bros.’
current and upcoming feature films, including Harry Potter and the Order of
Phoenix, Ocean’s
13, I Am
Legend and The
Dark Knight, as
well as select titles from the studio’s feature and television library. In
HBO’s first-ever output deal in France, Orange has acquired rights to a
selection of HBO series, films and mini-series, including the mini-series John
Adams, the
upcoming Alan Ball series True Blood and David Simon’s mini-series Generation Kill, as well as select documentaries
and library titles.

Orange’s new service will be available to consumers in
the fourth quarter of 2008.

“Orange has been a great partner to us since we
signed their very first VOD deal some four years ago,” said Jeffrey
Schlesinger, the president of Warner Bros. International Television
Distribution. “The deal we’ve announced today will help Orange provide
consumers with more choices and greater access to world-class programming and
we’re proud to be a part of that.”

“This is a monumental deal for HBO with a wonderful
partner in Orange,” said Charles Schreger, HBO’s president of programming
sales. “We are thrilled that the breadth and depth of HBO’s high-quality
programming will be enjoyed by French audiences and made available to them on
their preferred platform.”

“We are particularly proud to have signed this
important deal that will offer consumers broad access to our product while
spreading and reinforcing the digital services offering in the French market,”
added Iris Knobloch, the président-directeur general of Warner Bros. France.

—By Irene Lew