RTL Nederland, the Dutch arm of European broadcast giant RTL Group, seems to be gearing up for a showdown with Netflix.
The company on Wednesday announced the acquisition of a 65 percent stake in The Entertainment Group, the parent company of Dutch online VOD service Videoland. Financial details weren’t disclosed.
Netflix recently said that it would launch its streaming service in the Netherlands later this year in the latest step of its international expansion.
“Upon launch, broadband Internet users in the Netherlands can subscribe to Netflix and instantly watch Hollywood, local and global TV series and films, including critically-acclaimed Netflix original series, such as House of Cards and Arrested Development, whenever and wherever they like on tablets, phones, TVs, game consoles and computers,” Netflix said at the time. The company has, however, somewhat slowed down its global expansion push, which has affected its financials.
RTL Nederland’s deal will give it control over Videoland and MovieMax, which are offering on-demand video services online and on connected TVs.
Said Bert Habets, CEO of RTL Netherlands: “This takeover is a logical next step for us in the development of our on demand TV offering. RTL is undergoing a digital transformation.”
RTL said it would introduce the first all-you-can-watch subscription service offer in the Netherlands later this year.
Entertainment Group boss Co Mast said: “Videoland is the number one player in the market, and with the power of RTL we can further build out this solid base.”
RTL Group is majority-owned by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann.
E-mail: Georg.Szalai@THR.com
Twitter: @georgszalai
