Hollywood Suite - 4 HD movies channels launch in November - Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums

hugh · 2011-08-23, 10:29 AM

Hollywood Suite, four new high-definition channels for the True Movie Lover, announces its launch across Canada this November. Featuring commercial-free HD movies 24/7, uncut and unedited, Hollywood Suite is the exclusive home of movie channels from both Warner Bros. and MGM.

The announcement to bring these major motion picture studio brands to Canadian television was made by Jeffrey R. Schlesinger, President, Warner Bros.

Hollywood Suite is a single, connected movie destination providing a pure, high quality, affordable movie experience, accessible anywhere at any time. Available across Canada, subscribers can choose from over 450 different movie titles every month on television - with a selection available on demand, on-line and on mobile - all for one low monthly fee from their television service provider.

The Hollywood Suite is:

Warner Films - one of the most successful and recognized entertainment brands in the world, with an extensive world class library of film titles
The MGM Channel - showcasing movies from the famous Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer library including modern masterpieces and gems from Hollywood's golden age
Hollywood Storm - ultimate action films involving the best in epic adventure
Hollywood Festival - critically acclaimed independent and major studio romance and relationship films

The Hollywood Suite channels will be available across Canada on cable, satellite and IPTV. Pricing and packaging will be announced closer to launch.

worth · 2011-08-23, 10:38 AM

Sounds good to me. I hope Rogers picks this up.

David1953 · 2011-08-23, 10:46 AM

Yes, it does sound good, and I hope Eastlink picks it up as well.

jshel101 · 2011-08-23, 11:02 AM

Hopefully they will have better movies than Movie Central. If they do, then I will subscribe to these, if Shaw picks them up.

james99 · 2011-08-23, 11:05 AM

I'm a little confused. Wouldn't WB and MGM already have exclusive deals with TMN / MC etc?

Khorn · 2011-08-23, 11:20 AM

FWIW I was told it will be a really low cost (around $4.00) bundle and they are in talks with Rogers.

Bunkhouse · 2011-08-23, 11:38 AM

If it is ~$5, and does not require any fancy bundling requirement then i see it being attractive.

I'd imagine the it would be similar to Showcase Action, Diva type channels as far as movies are concerned (minus commercials).

PlayitSimple · 2011-08-23, 12:29 PM

On first glance, this appears to be a great suite of movie channels, all movies will be uncut, commercial-free and in HD!

Nice move to pickup WB TV & MGM Channel, too bad they couldn't have brought in Fox Movie Channel or Sony Movie Channel?! Interested to see what content Hollywood Storm & Hollywood Festival will have- will they air movies from other studios or will they also air movies from Warner Bros. & MGM?! I hope they can secure content from the other major studios including Universal, Sony, Paramount & 20th Century Fox as well as some flicks from indie companies.

TJ77 · 2011-08-23, 12:42 PM

It doesn't say anywhere that there will be first run movies, so this service will probably be similar to Action/Diva/Movietime.

doomy · 2011-08-23, 01:04 PM

Similar perhaps, but with one key advantage. Uncut and commercial free.

worth · 2011-08-23, 01:18 PM

This sounds closer to something like Moviepix. I also think they might be looking to compete with Netflix.

gretzky · 2011-08-23, 01:40 PM

well AT least !!! an MGM HD channel brand in canada ...it ain't the american one but at least a start
i'm sold if they bring good old movies and no obligatory bundle from the providers

hugh · 2011-08-23, 01:52 PM

This is pretty much an unknown until we get concrete details on pricing and movies.

TMN and Movie Central made $64 million last year on revenues of $244 million so even if Astral and Corus cut out their profits, it would still cost somewhere around $15 a month for those stations.

Can Hollywood Suite really offer a competitive offering to TMN and Movie Central for $5, $10 or $15 a month. Also TMN and Movie Central have HBO and Showtime programming which makes them much more attractive than "just" a movie channel.

You would think then that Hollywood Suite would need near universal distribution to make any money and to undercut TMN and MC.

I really can't see Shaw and Shaw Direct picking this up as it would compete with all their movie channels including Movie Central so already that's 35% of homes in Canada without it.

ScaryBob · 2011-08-23, 01:55 PM

Quote:

all for one low monthly fee from their television service provider.

Even more fragmentation of the TV movie market and another increase in BDU TV costs. If it's low cost and commercial free, I can live with it. This also explains the dearth of movies on other movies channels. If this trend continues, the only source of Hollywood movies may soon be from channels owned by the movie studios themselves.

There may be issues with carriage. Shaw Direct does not have the space for more HD channels until their new satellite is operational next year. They could add some with a switch to MPEG4 but there is no indication that will happen soon. BellTV also has very little space for more HD until they switch to MPEG4, which likely won't be until next year. Even then, space on these services will be squeezed by mandated carriage of new HD OTA locals.

worth · 2011-08-23, 02:10 PM

This wouldn't be in direct competition with The Movie Network. According to an article in today's Globe:

Quote:

...the channels will show movies that come after the pay-TV “window” -- that is, pay TV stations have exclusive rights to show movies on television typically for about 18 months following the DVD releases, Mr. Switzer said. The new channels will specialize in contemporary films that are finished their pay TV run, and reach all the way back to the classic vaults.

2011-08-23, 10:29 AM	#1
hugh Member #1 Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Toronto Posts: 47,501	Hollywood Suite - 4 HD movies channels launch in November Hollywood Suite, four new high-definition channels for the True Movie Lover, announces its launch across Canada this November. Featuring commercial-free HD movies 24/7, uncut and unedited, Hollywood Suite is the exclusive home of movie channels from both Warner Bros. and MGM. The announcement to bring these major motion picture studio brands to Canadian television was made by Jeffrey R. Schlesinger, President, Warner Bros. Hollywood Suite is a single, connected movie destination providing a pure, high quality, affordable movie experience, accessible anywhere at any time. Available across Canada, subscribers can choose from over 450 different movie titles every month on television - with a selection available on demand, on-line and on mobile - all for one low monthly fee from their television service provider. The Hollywood Suite is: Warner Films - one of the most successful and recognized entertainment brands in the world, with an extensive world class library of film titles The MGM Channel - showcasing movies from the famous Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer library including modern masterpieces and gems from Hollywood's golden age Hollywood Storm - ultimate action films involving the best in epic adventure Hollywood Festival - critically acclaimed independent and major studio romance and relationship films The Hollywood Suite channels will be available across Canada on cable, satellite and IPTV. Pricing and packaging will be announced closer to launch. __________________ As of January 2012, I am no longer the owner of the Digital Home website. If you have questions about the operation of the site, please contact VSAdmin. For personal inquiries contact me at the Hugh Thompson website.

2011-08-23, 01:52 PM	#13
hugh Member #1 Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Toronto Posts: 47,501	This is pretty much an unknown until we get concrete details on pricing and movies. TMN and Movie Central made $64 million last year on revenues of $244 million so even if Astral and Corus cut out their profits, it would still cost somewhere around $15 a month for those stations. Can Hollywood Suite really offer a competitive offering to TMN and Movie Central for $5, $10 or $15 a month. Also TMN and Movie Central have HBO and Showtime programming which makes them much more attractive than "just" a movie channel. You would think then that Hollywood Suite would need near universal distribution to make any money and to undercut TMN and MC. I really can't see Shaw and Shaw Direct picking this up as it would compete with all their movie channels including Movie Central so already that's 35% of homes in Canada without it. __________________ As of January 2012, I am no longer the owner of the Digital Home website. If you have questions about the operation of the site, please contact VSAdmin. For personal inquiries contact me at the Hugh Thompson website.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search
Display Modes
Linear Mode Switch to Hybrid Mode Switch to Threaded Mode

2011-08-23, 10:38 AM	#2
worth Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 104	Sounds good to me. I hope Rogers picks this up.

2011-08-23, 10:46 AM	#3
David1953 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Halifax, Nova Scotia (Eastlink Motorola DCX3400, Motorola DCX700) Posts: 640	Yes, it does sound good, and I hope Eastlink picks it up as well.

2011-08-23, 11:02 AM	#4
jshel101 Veteran Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Calgary Posts: 1,720	Hopefully they will have better movies than Movie Central. If they do, then I will subscribe to these, if Shaw picks them up.

2011-08-23, 11:05 AM	#5
james99 Moderator Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Burlington Posts: 24,791	I'm a little confused. Wouldn't WB and MGM already have exclusive deals with TMN / MC etc?

2011-08-23, 11:20 AM	#6
Khorn Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: North York (West Lansing), Toronto Posts: 1,082	FWIW I was told it will be a really low cost (around $4.00) bundle and they are in talks with Rogers.

2011-08-23, 11:38 AM	#7
Bunkhouse Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Winnipeg Posts: 489	If it is ~$5, and does not require any fancy bundling requirement then i see it being attractive. I'd imagine the it would be similar to Showcase Action, Diva type channels as far as movies are concerned (minus commercials).

2011-08-23, 12:29 PM	#8
PlayitSimple Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 844	On first glance, this appears to be a great suite of movie channels, all movies will be uncut, commercial-free and in HD! Nice move to pickup WB TV & MGM Channel, too bad they couldn't have brought in Fox Movie Channel or Sony Movie Channel?! Interested to see what content Hollywood Storm & Hollywood Festival will have- will they air movies from other studios or will they also air movies from Warner Bros. & MGM?! I hope they can secure content from the other major studios including Universal, Sony, Paramount & 20th Century Fox as well as some flicks from indie companies.

2011-08-23, 12:42 PM	#9
TJ77 Veteran Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 1,991	It doesn't say anywhere that there will be first run movies, so this service will probably be similar to Action/Diva/Movietime.

2011-08-23, 01:04 PM	#10
doomy Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Oshawa, just off the 401, under a cellphone tower, in the shadow of the GM plant Posts: 233	Similar perhaps, but with one key advantage. Uncut and commercial free.

2011-08-23, 01:18 PM	#11
worth Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 104	This sounds closer to something like Moviepix. I also think they might be looking to compete with Netflix.

2011-08-23, 01:40 PM	#12
gretzky Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 737	well AT least !!! an MGM HD channel brand in canada ...it ain't the american one but at least a start i'm sold if they bring good old movies and no obligatory bundle from the providers