RLJ plants Acorn in Lat Am

UK comedy drama Doc Martin

Acorn TV, the North American SVoD service dedicated to international television, is expanding its reach by launching across Latin America.

The service will be made available in 12 Lat Am countries on Roku streaming devices, with subscribers in Argentina, Chile, Mexico and Colombia already able to access its programming.

Viewers in Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and Peru will also be able to access the service, which costs US$4.99 per month.

Programming, which will be in English with Spanish subtitles available, includes the first season of ITV dramedy Doc Martin, detective drama Jack Taylor from Ireland’s TV3, and an array of BBC dramas, including the first two seasons of Line of Duty and historical drama The Great Train Robbery.

Matthew Graham, senior VP and general manager for RLJ Entertainment-backed Acorn TV, said the Latin American launches “mark an excellent first step” in its expansion plans.

“One of our top 2018 priorities is accelerating our expansion of our distribution footprint, and Acorn TV’s launch in Latin America with our partner Roku is another step in this progression,” said Miguel Penella, CEO of RLJ Entertainment.

“This advancement in our international expansion underscores our confidence of achieving our target of one million subscribers by early 2019.”

Earlier this year Acorn Media Enterprises, the UK-based development division for the Acorn brand of parent company RLJ Entertainment, said it had partnered https://www.c21media.net/acorn-joins-rte-in-finding-joy/ with Irish pubcaster RTÉ on comedy Finding Joy for its OTT service.

Acorn has also acquired a number of series https://www.c21media.net/acorn-takes-offence-from-fremantle/ from FremantleMedia International and revived https://www.c21media.net/acorn-tv-revives-sky-show-as-first-original/ former Sky comedy-drama Agatha Raisin at the beginning of the year.

It has also teamed up with Australian outfit Jungle Entertainment to coproduce family comedy Sando and has commissioned London Kills https://www.c21media.net/acorn-orders-straight-to-series-procedural/ from Suspects scribe Paul Marquess, its first straight-to-series UK drama.