Tribune Media Services and Blockbuster Enter Agreement to Enhance New On Demand Digital Movie Rental Service
Tribune Media Services (TMS), the leading provider of entertainment information databases, and Blockbuster Inc., a leading global provider of media entertainment, have entered into an agreement where TMS will map its industry-leading movie metadata to a specific library of Blockbuster movie content.
TiVo Inc. is the first joint customer of TMS and Blockbuster to deploy the BLOCKBUSTER On Demand® service. Through the service, owners of broadband-connected TiVo® Series2™, Series3™ and TiVo HD DVRs have instant access to the Blockbuster catalog of new releases, popular hits and independent movie favorites. The launch of BLOCKBUSTER On Demand® is another step in the drive to make Blockbuster branded services available via Web-connected consumer electronics devices.
The mapping of TMS movie metadata to the Blockbuster catalog allows joint customers to easily integrate Blockbuster titles throughout their video services’ navigation screens and menus. In addition, deep metadata from TMS allows better search results to help consumers easily discover the Blockbuster movies that most meet their interests and mood.
Given the wide distribution of TMS entertainment data across online guides, set-top boxes and consumer electronics devices, TMS plays a central role in helping innovative content distributors like Blockbuster easily integrate their offerings with many of the most popular video services and consumer electronics devices.
“As more video options are available across more media platforms, consumers need easier ways to search across thousands of titles,” said Jay Fehnel, Vice President TMS’ Entertainment Information division. “TMS is in the perfect position to help Blockbuster and other companies make life easier for consumers, by linking their content libraries to our widely distributed TV and movie metadata.”
TMS metadata powers the leading television and movie guide products which reach millions of consumers in 40 countries through clients including Microsoft, Google, TiVo, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, IMDb and The New York Times.