Disney, NENT extend relationship

Major movie releases including Bohemian Rhapsody are covered by the deal

Disney has extended a long-term output deal with Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT Group), for the first time handing the latter’s Viaplay streaming service first dibs on the latest blockbusters from 20th Century Studios.

The new arrangement, which comes as NENT undergoes its latest restructure and Disney gears up for the international expansion of its own streamer, also spans the formers’ Viasat pay TV channels.

Films including Bohemian Rhapsody, The Favourite, Jojo Rabbit and Ford v Ferrari will have an exclusive first pay TV window on Viaplay and Viasat in the Nordic region.

The platforms will continue to feature new and established ABC series such as Grey’s Anatomy, with upcoming sci-fi mystery thriller Emergence and The Fosters spin-off Good Trouble debuting through Viaplay.

Disney Channel, Disney Junior and Disney XD also remain available via the Viasat carriage agreement covering Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland, with subscribers also retaining access to extended catch-up of the channels’ latest series.

It is not yet clear how the new arrangement fits in with the Mouse House’s plans for the roll-out of Disney+ across Europe and elsewhere.

NENT also offers Viaplay customers Fox+, a service with more than 4,000 episodes of boxsets including 24, Prison Break and Futurama, as well as National Geographic+, featuring 600 documentary episodes.

20th Century Studios films and series such as How I Met Your Mother, The Simpsons and Bones also feature on NENT’s free TV channels, while Viasat also carries Fox within its pay TV packages. The firm retains responsibility for ad sales for Fox and Disney channels in Sweden, Norway and Denmark.

“We are delighted to extend and expand our content partnership with NENT Group as we together look to bring Nordic audiences more original stories across more screens from the legendary 20th Century Studios,” said Disney Nordic senior VP and country manager Hans van Rijn. “Furthermore, we are thrilled to continue to offer Viasat subscribers our full portfolio of the Disney TV channels.”

“This agreement will extend our relationship with Disney to nearly 20 years,” added NENT chief content officer Filippa Wallestam. “We will now show even more of the world’s biggest films and series for years to come.”