In what the company calls a “groundbreaking deal,” Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) announced this morning that it has signed a multiyear deal with DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. (NASDAQ: DWA) to offer TV programming based on DreamWorks characters such as Shrek and Kung Fu Panda. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
Netflix signed a deal late last year with The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) for both new TV programming and exclusive rights to stream Disney studio films beginning in 2016. Netflix did not renew its programming deal with Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB), which has signed up with Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) for streaming rights to popular Nickelodeon programs like “Dora the Explorer” and “Spongebob Squarepants.”
DreamWorks and Netflix already have a deal in place that gives Netflix first TV rights to DreamWorks movies after the movies have played in theaters. That deal goes into effect next year. The two firms also have an original series in the works for December based on the DreamWorks movie “Turbo,” which opens in theaters next month.
Children’s programming is a big deal for Netflix and Amazon and their competitors. Netflix is reportedly $300 million annually for its Disney programming and Amazon is thought to be paying $200 million a year to Viacom. Today’s announced deal is surely in that ballpark.
Shares of Netflix are up 1.7% in pre-market trading this morning, at $217.56 in a 52-week range of $52.81 to $248.85.
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