Pan-European streaming service Viaplay has signed a multiyear deal with NBCUniversal Global Distribution to take exclusive streaming rights for the Nordic territories, the Netherlands and Poland for more than 400 episodes of TV series, including hits from DreamWorks Animation.
The deal, unveiled on Wednesday, includes DreamWorks animated series based on the studio’s hit franchises Madagascar, How to Train Your Dragon and The Croods, among others.
Starting in spring, Viaplay will have exclusive streaming rights for the NBCU children’s and family catalog across its European footprint.
Among the shows included in the deal are: Madagascar: A Little Wild, The Croods: Family Tree, Dragons: The Nine Realms, Abominable & The Invisible City and TrollsTopia. The deal includes rights to the original DreamWorks feature films on which the series are based, as well as classic franchises from the studio, such as Shrek and Kung Fu Panda.
Several live-action and nonscripted series from NBCU are also part of the Viaplay deal, including Universal International Studios’ Charles Dickens-inspired comedy-drama Dodger. The series, starring Christopher Eccleston, David Threlfall, Billy Jenkins and Saira Choudhry, imagines the adventures of the infamous pickpocket the Artful Dodger, a character from Dickens’ Oliver Twist. The new Peacock musical comedy Take Note, starring Christopher Seivright, Braelyn Rankins and Nadine Whiteman Roden is also included in the Viaplay deal.
