Back in November, Channel 4 launched Film4oD, a web-based, on-demand adjunct to its Film4 linear channels that requires payment for movies.
It doesn’t seem to have made much of a splash. But web is just the start…
Film4oD is also a YouView partner. When it gets on to connected TVs, the service could take off.
Film4oD is really a rebadged offering from FilmFlex, which also provides a similar on-demand PPV movie service to Virgin Media (NSDQ: VMED) through cable and on web, through Virgin customers’ existing bills.
Film4oD has been taking payments by credit and debit card and PayPal since launch. Today, FilmFlex announced it would also take viewer payments through PayWizard, a new paid content wallet system which has garnered six clients so far this year.
The wallet can be topped up with cash from viewers’ bank accounts. Movie prices range from £0.99 to £3.99.
FilmFlex says it picked PayWizard because it allows for payment models like subscription, not just PPV. That opens up the possibility not just of Film4oD becoming a PPV success in the connected TV era, but also of offering themselves on a monthly subscription basis.
That would put Film4oD in competition with Lovefilm, yet-to-launch Netflix (NSDQ: NFLX), Sky Movies and others. All of which could make the connected-TV movie environment one of competition on price.
FilmFlex, for whom Virgin Media has long been its primary client, tells paidContent it will be launching more services soon.
FilmFlex also claims to have “more new movies to rent than iTunes, Lovefilm or Blinkbox”.