Paramount to combine Channel 5’s My5 with Pluto TV to form free streaming hub in UK

Source: Paramount Global

Paramount Global parent company of Channel 5 is to combine the UK broadcaster’s video-on-demand service My5 with its FAST provider Pluto TV to become a new consolidated free streaming hub for audiences in the UK.

The advertising-supported free streaming destination is planned to launch by 2024. It will deliver new, exclusive and archived content from Channel 5, along with a collection of curated FAST channels from Pluto TV.

The new product which will leverage Pluto TV’s technology platform will combine BVOD, FAST, AVOD and Live TV all at once. Pluto TV houses more than 2000 channels globally from over 425 content partners, with over 20,000 hours of free content. While Channel 5 is best known for its hit shows Dalgleish, All Creatures Great And Small, Ben Fogle: New Lives In The Wild, The Yorkshire Vet and Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly.

Paramount said Pluto TV has grown significantly the past several years, reaching annual revenue in excess of $1BN and expanding its footprint across four continents and over 35 markets.

“We’re proud of the huge success and growth in viewing that we have seen on our BVOD service, My5.  As we look ahead to an IP-delivered future, this is the right time for us to fully leverage the Paramount ecosystem and combine the reach and scale of our free-to-air network in the UK with the global success of our FAST service, Pluto TV.  We’re well underway with work on this product, and I’m incredibly excited about the content and user experience we’ll be able to offer our audiences and our advertising partners when we launch next year,” said Maria Kyriacou, President, broadcast & studios, Paramount International Markets.

“As an early pioneer of FAST globally, we’ve seen incredible growth and excitement for Pluto TV in markets around the world. By joining forces with our leading BVOD platform in the UK, we are offering audiences, partners, and clients a supersized free streaming destination that we know they’ll love,” said Olivier Jollet, EVP and general manager Pluto TV, Paramount International Markets. “This is a significant evolution for our free streaming business in this important market and a testament to how we strategically approach our platforms and the future of streaming.”