Fullscreen sets up SVoD service

YouTube business Fullscreen is set to launch a Netflix-style ad-free subscription VoD service for teenagers and young adults.

Peter Chernin

The company, owned by ex-News Corp chief operating officer Peter Chernin and telecoms giant AT&T, will roll out the US$4.99 per month offering with a 30-day free trial on April 26.

Known by the company’s name, the service will offer more than 800 hours of content from US players including Warner Bros, Sony Pictures Television, NBCUniversal and MTV.

“This is for an audience that we know and love – a generation of young people that grew up with online video and social media. The phone is their primary screen and they look up to an entirely new breed of creators and stars,” said Fullscreen founder and CEO George Strompolos.

“We’ve created something special for them that feels more in tune with the way they want to experience great entertainment.”

The service will also feature new daily content, including playlists from YouTube creators.

AT&T will market the service to its 100 million-plus customer base and coproduce content with Fullscreen that will be distributed on DirecTV, U-verse and the Fullscreen service.

Fullscreen is majority owned by Otter Media, a partnership between AT&T and The Chernin Group.

The new service will compete with the likes of Netflix, Hulu and YouTube Red but its pricing may give it an advantage.