LOS ANGELES—In the last year, consumers aren’t the only ones who've moved some of their purchasing habits for films and TV shows online. Professional distributors of film and TV content are also increasingly using online platforms to sell film and TV rights to buyers around the world.
For example, Vuulr, the global online content marketplace for film and TV is reporting that its platform has facilitated the sale of rights to more than 2,000 hours of content sold so far in Q3 2021. Based on those increases, Vuulr says it is on pace to eclipse 10,000 hours of content sales a year on its platform.
Global content producers including Insight TV, National Film Board of Canada, MAGNETFILM, Vision Films, Mediaquiz International, Bell-Phillip TV Productions and Blue Media are among the many turning to the platform to facilitate these sales, the company reported.
Currently Vuulr features content from producers and distributors worldwide, comprising over 170,000 hours of shows across over 60 genres and it is working with over 7,000 sellers from 120 different countries.
“While creating deals the traditional face-to-face way isn’t going away, Vuulr is adding another tool to our arsenal in how we ultimately distribute our content,” MAGNETFILM managing director Georg Gruber said. “Vuulr has helped us connect with hungry buyers from around the world, looking to expand their content libraries to fulfill their consumers’ increasing demand for international content.”
MAGNETFILM, which is based in Berlin, currently has 53 unique titles comprising 95 hours of factual content listed on the Vuulr marketplace. Using Vuulr, MAGNETFILM has recently completed licensing deals with buyers in the U.S., U.K, India and Mongolia, totaling 31 hours of content.
Other deals involved Insight TV (Netherlands), which sold over 80 hours of content to U.S.-based Curiosity Stream and Vision Films (U.S), which recently sold 120 hours of content to a U.S based OTT service. In total, the independent distributor has sold over 300 hours of content to buyers in Portugal, Latvia, Australia, Israel and U.S.
“We are seeing that demand for international content is at an all-time high. ” Vuulr CEO Ian McKee said. “Vuulr overcomes the barriers of distance and time zones and connects great content with buyers at traditional broadcasters as well as streaming platforms globally. We are making it easier and faster for Buyers to discover and acquire great content from anywhere in the world. Vuulr reduces the friction in the sourcing, evaluation and acquisition process, which enables deals to close in, on average, 10 days on the platform. For Sellers, we’re excited to work complementary to their current distribution, enabling them to reach regions and find new opportunities, generating new-found incremental revenue.”
