MONTREAL – For the first time in Canada, a new TV show will debut in the video on demand space – before it airs on broadcast television.
Vidéotron’s video on demand service will carry previews of Nos Etés II starting December 20, 2005. The program is the continuation of the popular television series Nos Etés, broadcast last winter on the TVA television network. Subscribers to illico Digital TV will have the opportunity to be the first to see the second season of the gripping family saga. The program will subsequently be broadcast weekly on the TVA network, starting in March 2006.
Nos Etés II is coming to video on demand as a result of an agreement between the TVA network, which produced the program, Archambault Group, which holds the operating licence for the VOD service, and Vidéotron, all of which contributed to the financing of the production.
All three companies are owned by Quebecor Media.
"The TVA network is proud to team up with its sister companies Archambault Group and Vidéotron to present a high-calibre television series and help implement a new business model," said Pierre Dion, president and CEO of TVA Group. "More than ever, TVA intends to play a leading role, through partnerships of this type, in the new field of multiplatform broadcasting, which offers us opportunities to support the production and dissemination of original, high-quality Québec content in the future."
"Vidéotron’s commitment is to deliver the best possible customer experience with all our services – cable TV, Internet and telephone service," said Robert Dépatie, president and CEO of Vidéotron. "When it comes to digital TV and VOD, that increasingly means carrying premiers and value-added exclusive content. With the proliferation of new broadcasting platforms, Vidéotron has made a clear choice to invest in and help finance productions in order to have access to the best content and support Québec’s dynamic cultural industries."
Michel d’Astous, co-producer and co-writer of Nos Etés, says the financing and broadcasting partnership is a model for the future.
Nos Etés tells the story of two families whose histories are intertwined over six generations. The saga spans a period of more than a hundred years.
The popularity of digital television is soaring across North America. There are now nearly half a million households subscribed to Vidéotron’s illico Digital TV service, all of whom have access to a VOD service carrying over 1,000 titles, including films, TVA programs and documentaries.
