CBS’ new Steven Spielberg series, Extant, will be streamed on Amazon Prime exclusively thanks to a content licencing deal announced today. The serialized drama, starring Halle Berry, will be available to Amazon Prime subscribers four days after each new episode airs. The series will be accessible through any compatible Amazon Instant Video device, including: Kindle Fire HDX, Kindle Fire HD, iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, Roku, Xbox, PlayStation and the Wii. Episodes will also be available for purchase and download exclusively at Amazon Instant Video.
Check out the press release, following the jump, for more details.
AMAZON AND CBS CORPORATION ANNOUNCE EXCLUSIVE CONTENT LICENSING AGREEMENT FOR NEW CBS SERIES EXTANT, PRODUCED BY STEVEN SPIELBERG’S AMBLIN TELEVISION AND STARRING HALLE BERRY
Published on: 01/08/2014
Extant to Premiere on the CBS Television Network in June
Prime Instant Video to be Exclusive Premium Subscription Home for Extant With Episodes Available to Members Four Days After Broadcast
SEATTLE and LOS ANGELES—Jan. 8, 2014—CBS Corporation (NYSE: CBS.A and CBS) and Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced today a content licensing agreement for the new CBS Television series EXTANT.
The serialized drama, starring Halle Berry and produced by Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television, will premiere on the CBS Television Network in June. Amazon Prime Instant Video will be the exclusive premium subscription home for EXTANT with unlimited streaming of all the series’ episodes available to their members four days after their initial broadcast on CBS.
Amazon Prime members will be able to enjoy the episodes on hundreds of compatible Amazon Instant Video devices including Kindle Fire HDX, Kindle Fire HD, iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, Roku, Xbox, PlayStation and the Wii. Episodes of EXTANT will also be available for purchase and download exclusively at Amazon Instant Video (www.amazon.com/AIV). Prime Instant Video is the only U.S. online subscription streaming service that enables offline viewing—on a plane, on vacation, and anywhere else where you may not have Wi-Fi. Customers can download episodes of EXTANT and tens of thousands of other Prime Instant Videos to their new Kindle Fire HD or Kindle Fire HDX.
This agreement follows CBS and Amazon’s highly successful subscription video-on-demand model for last summer’s number one series UNDER THE DOME, which averaged 15.06 million viewers and was the most-watched scripted summer series in 21 years. UNDER THE DOME Season 1 was also watched by more customers than any other TV season on Prime Instant Video this year.
EXTANT is a mystery thriller about a female astronaut trying to reconnect with her family when she returns after a year in outer space. Her experiences lead to events that ultimately will change the course of human history.
“Our partnership with Amazon for UNDER THE DOME helped build a creative, financial and marketing model for event television in the summer,” said Scott Koondel, Chief Corporate Licensing Officer, CBS Corporation. “We look forward to using the same model for EXTANT, a series whose creative auspices, on-screen talent and intriguing concept is already generating great excitement.”
“We received very positive feedback from Prime members about this summer’s exclusive access to UNDER THE DOME,” said Brad Beale, Director of Content Acquisition for Digital Video at Amazon. “Customers loved being able to watch the show just days after it aired as well as catching up on previous episodes. We are thrilled to offer Prime members this access for Extant, another exciting new show from CBS.”
EXTANT is a co-production of CBS Television Studios and Amblin Television. Steven Spielberg, Greg Walker, Mickey Fisher, who wrote the script, Brooklyn Weaver, Justin Falvey and Darryl Frank will serve as executive producers. Halle Berry will serve as co-executive producer. The series will be distributed domestically by CBS Television Distribution and worldwide by CBS Studios International.
About Amazon Instant Video
Amazon Instant Video is a digital video streaming and download service that offers Amazon customers the ability to rent, purchase or subscribe to a huge catalog of videos. Customers can choose from more than 150,000 titles to purchase or rent—movies range from new releases to classic favorites, and Amazon Instant Video offers major television shows, entire seasons, or even day after air TV. Prime Instant Video is Amazon’s video subscription offer—it includes tens of thousands of movies and TV episodes selected from the full assortment available at Amazon Instant Video.
About Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth’s Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Kindle Paperwhite is the world’s best-selling and most advanced e-reader. It features new display technology with higher contrast, the next generation built-in light, a faster processor, the latest touch technology, and exclusive new features designed from the ground up for readers. Kindle, the lightest and smallest Kindle, features improved fonts and faster page turns. The new Kindle Fire HDX features a stunning exclusive 7” or 8.9” HDX display, a quad-core 2.2 GHz processor, 2x more memory, and 11 hours of battery life, as well as exclusive new features of Fire OS 3.0 including X-Ray for Music, Second Screen, Prime Instant Video downloads, and the revolutionary new Mayday button. The all-new Kindle Fire HD includes an HD display, high-performance processor and dual speakers at a breakthrough price.
Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de,www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, www.amazon.cn, www.amazon.it, www.amazon.es,www.amazon.com.br, www.amazon.in, www.amazon.com.mx, and www.amazon.com.au. As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management’s expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment and data center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com’s financial results is included in Amazon.com’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.
About CBS Corporation
CBS Corporation (NYSE: CBS.A and CBS) is a mass media company that creates and distributes industry-leading content across a variety of platforms to audiences around the world. The Company has businesses with origins that date back to the dawn of the broadcasting age as well as new ventures that operate on the leading edge of media. CBS owns the most-watched television network in the U.S. and one of the world’s largest libraries of entertainment content, making its brand – “the Eye” – one of the most recognized in business. The Company’s operations span virtually every field of media and entertainment, including cable, publishing, radio, local TV, film, outdoor advertising, and interactive and socially responsible media. CBS’s businesses include CBS Television Network, The CW (a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment), Showtime Networks, CBS Sports Network, TVGN (a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Lionsgate), Smithsonian Networks, Simon & Schuster, CBS Television Stations, CBS Radio, CBS Outdoor, CBS Television Studios, CBS Global Distribution Group (CBS Studios International and CBS Television Distribution), CBS Interactive, CBS Consumer Products, CBS Home Entertainment, CBS Films and CBS EcoMedia. For more information, go to www.cbscorporation.com.