YOU On Demand has signed an agreement with Paramount Pictures to offer the studio's movies on its pay-per-view and video-on-demand platform in China.
Among the films that YOU will be able to add to its stable of titles thanks to the pact are “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” “Transformers” and “Star Trek.”
YOU, the brainchild of Shane McMahon, son of World Wrestling Entertainment Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon, went public last June.
McMahon became involved in the company two years ago when it was still christened China Broadband. In an interview with TheWrap shortly after YOU debuted on the Nasdaq, he said what attracted him to the project was not the possibilities of internet technology, but China Broadband’s governmental license to operate the first national video on demand and pay-per-view platform in the country. It has since abandoned both the old name and the broadband side of the business.
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“When we morphed into YOU on Demand we changed the entire business model,” McMahon said. “We needed a name, we needed a logo, we did so much work, that’s why we all treat it as a startup.”
Under McMahon, YOU has signed deals with some major studios, including Warner Bros., Disney, Lionsgate, Miramax and Magnolia.
“Paramount Pictures is one of Hollywood’s most iconic studios and we are delighted to offer films from its rich library to our customers,” McMahon said in a statement “The addition of Paramount’s roster now gives YOU On Demand the most vibrant and compelling titles available in the People’s Republic of China."
YOU on Demand launched in 3 million homes last winter and plans to be in 11 million Chinese homes by the end of the year. Its stock was down 3.37 percent to $4.30 in recent trading.