Video-on-demand (VOD) provider Wuaki.tv will launch in Germany on November 25, 2014 co-founder and COO Josep Mitjà told Broadband TV News at German media industry conference Medientage München 2014.
The company commenced its beta test stage in Germany at the event in Munich. A limited number of German internet users can register at www.wuaki.tv from now on and use the preliminary version of the web offering after they’ve been granted access.
The streaming video service provides current movies and TV series which can be accessed individually for rent for a 48 hour period or for permanent ownership. Besides Hollywood blockbusters and German films, Wuaki.tv focuses on European productions, thereby aiming to position itself as a European alternative to US competitors.
From its regular launch, the OTT service will be available on connected TV sets, games consoles, PCs, laptops, tablets and smartphones. The aim is to provide a service that’s very simple to use across multiple devices, said Mitjà.
A flat fee subscription covering the whole content lineup like offered by Netflix, maxdome, Watchever and Sky Snap in Germany is, however, not currently planned in Germany. Technically, this would be possible, though, said Mitjà. Wuaki.tv offers such a subscription-VOD service in Spain.
Like Netflix, Wuaki.tv won’t provide a download mode for offline viewing of the content, for example on tablets. The reason is that the company’s focus is on delivering streaming video to connected TV sets which usually don’t have a hard drive, explained Mitjà.
The Barcelona-based company is a subsidiary of Japanese e-commerce group Rakuten. With more than 1.25 million registered users, Wuaki.tv is the market leader in Spain. The service is also available in the UK and France.
By the end of 2015, Wuaki.tv wants to be present in 15 European countries.
