Netflix has lost its lineup of Epix movies to rival streaming service Hulu. This means that its subscribers will no longer be able to stream high-profile movies like the Hunger Games and Transformers: Age of Extinction.
Netflix and Epix no longer partners
On Sunday, Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said in a blog post that the company won’t renew its deal with Epix. The deal will expire at the end of September, meaning hit films like World War Z and Rocky will also be removed from Netflix. The news was confirmed by Epix later on Sunday, when it made an official announcement of a multi-year deal with Hulu starting October 1st.
Mark Greenberg, the president and CEO of Epix, said that Hulu has grown quickly to take a place among the most popular streaming services. The fact that Hulu entered into a deal with Epix proves that it very well understands the value that Epix’s content can bring to the customers, Greenberg said. The content that Epix will be bringing to Hulu includes blockbuster Hollywood movies, a deep library of classic film titles and original programming.
“Hulu already offers some of the best and biggest titles in television programming, but our subscribers have been asking us for more, and more recent, big movies. We listened,” said senior VP and head of content at Hulu, Craig Erwich. Terming it a landmark deal, Erwich said a huge collection of the biggest blockbusters and premium films will now be available to Hulu customers.
Focus on original content
In 2010, Netflix created a third-party digital SVOD window for Epix. The exclusive rights were lost by Netflix in 2012, and Epix entered into an agreement with Amazon that year, which was renewed in February.
Neither Netflix nor Epix shared the reason for ending the deal. Sarandos acknowledged that many of the titles that will be removed are popular among users, but noted that they can be found in other locations. The end of the deal should not come as a surprise as the streaming firm is now more focused on its original TV and film offerings than licensed content.
Nevertheless, Netflix still has a deal with Disney, granting the streaming firm exclusive pay-TV rights for Disney films, including those from Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm.
