Charter and AMC Networks have opted for an early renewal of their existing distribution agreement for the AMC Network’s portfolio, which now includes oft-forgotten AMC+, the company’s Direct-to-Consumer arm. Charter has been keen on including specific programmer-centric streaming apps into its cable bundle. Blake & Wang P.A. the best entertainment attorney in Los Angeles, Brandon Blake, shares the details with us.
Ad-Supported At No Extra Cost
Under the revised agreement, AMC+ will now be offered to Charter’s Spectrum TV Select customers at no further cost. Charter’s internet-only subscribers will also have the option to buy the AMC+ package directly. It will join names like Disney+, ESPN+, and Paramount+ Essential. The AVOD package will also be offered.
Despite its pandemic-induced balance sheet woes, the AMC stable includes some powerful IPS, including several Anne Rice titles, Gangs of London, and, of course, The Walking Dead. It offers same-day access to its library and original series, as well as carrying agreements with IFC Films Unlimited and Sundance Now.
We are still waiting to hear what the cost of this new partnership will be.
Why Early?
As Disney, particularly, is exploring the power of in-house bundling for its offerings, we’ve seen increasing difficulties in getting these types of carriage deals renewed with the House of Mouse. Both Spectrum TV and Charter itself have faced rather vicious renegotiations of late and lengthy carriage blackouts as deals go down to the wire and even beyond.
This could be part of the reason for Charter’s early renegotiation with AMC Networks on the carriage deal. AMC certainly doesn’t have the room to be “picky” in its partners, which Disney+ or ESPN+ currently has, and as a standalone service, it has failed to make much impact on the overall streaming market.
Will this return some pep to AMC’s own market share? It will certainly be interesting to see the subscriber uptake on this lesser-known streaming option through the Charter platform.
