CinemaNow

CinemaNow was an international over-the-top (OTT) provider of on-demand, Internet streaming media available to viewers in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The company was founded in 1999 and was headquartered in Los Angeles, California.[1] CinemaNow changed hands several times over the years and was eventually shut down on August 1, 2017.[2]

CinemaNow, LLC
Privately held
IndustryVideo on demand
Founded1999 (1999)
FounderCurt Marvis and Bruce Eisen
DefunctAugust 1, 2017 (2017-08-01)
Headquarters
Los Angeles, California
,
USA
Area served
US, Canada and United Kingdom
ServicesVideo content delivery
Number of employees
120
ParentSonic Solutions (2006-2010)
Best Buy (2010-2014)
Regent Equity Partners (2014-2016)
FilmOn (2016-2017)
Websitecinemanow.com

History

CinemaNow was founded in 1999 as one of the first on-demand Internet streaming media platforms. The Company was backed by EchoStar, Cisco Systems, Index Holdings, Menlo Ventures, Lionsgate, and Microsoft.[3][4]

In November 2008, Sonic Solutions acquired CinemaNow.[5] In January 2009, Sonic and Blockbuster, Inc. announced a strategic alliance to provide digital content delivery under the Blockbuster brand, essentially merging the digital storefronts of CinemaNow and its erstwhile competitor.

In 2010, Sonic Solutions and Best Buy announced a strategic alliance which resulted in Best Buy's acquiring the CinemaNow brand.[6][7] Sonic Solutions rebranded the CinemaNow movie technology as RoxioNow, which became a white label movie store business.[8] Sonic Solutions was acquired by Rovi Corporation for $775 million in December 2010[9] and continued to operate the white label movie store business, which was renamed the Rovi Entertainment Store.[10][11]

In July 2013, Rovi announced that the Rovi Entertainment Store had been acquired by Reliance Majestic Holdings LLC, a new media company backed by Proveho Capital, a private equity firm based in Austin, Texas.[12][13] In July 2014, Best Buy sold the CinemaNow business to the private equity firm Regent Equity Partners.

The company changed hands again in January 2016, when Regent Equity Partners sold CinemaNow to the UK-based company FilmOn.[14] Reports surfaced in August 2017 that the site had become inaccessible, and it was later confirmed that CinemaNow had been removed from Ultraviolet's list of providers.[2][15]

Products and services

The CinemaNow platform was available on the web, on mobile devices running Android and iOS, on PlayStation and Xbox game consoles, and on CE devices including LG, Panasonic, Samsung, and Toshiba.[16][17] Videos from CinemaNow are available for electronic sell-through via Download To Own, in the home video release window, DVD burning, as well as rental time-limited viewing in the pay-per-view window.[18] As of 2016, the company had 55,000 movies and TV episodes in its library.[14]

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See also
  • Comparison of digital distribution platforms for mobile devices

References
  1. "Retail: CinemaNow, Inc". BusinessWeek. June 16, 2009. Archived from the original on June 16, 2009.
  2. Chabot, Jeff (August 8, 2017). "CinemaNow movie website & platform is no more". HD Report. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  3. Marshall, Matt (July 12, 2006). "CinemaNow lands $20 million, to keep up with everyone else". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  4. "CinemaNow Secures $20.3 Million Investment" (Press release). CinemaNow via vFinance.com. n.d. Archived from the original on May 9, 2015.
  5. Albrecht, Chris (November 19, 2008). "Sonic Solutions to Buy CinemaNow". Gigaom. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  6. Fritz, Ben (May 18, 2010). "Best option: Best Buy acquires CinemaNow name for its digital video offering". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 10, 2015. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  7. Russell, Terrence (April 17, 2009). "Best Buy breaking into movie downloads?". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
  8. Takahashi, Dean (January 4, 2010). "Sonic Solutions to launch richer version of CinemaNow movie service". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  9. "Rovi to Buy Sonic Solutions for $775 Million to Add Streaming to Listings". Bloomberg News. Bloomberg L.P. December 23, 2010. Archived from the original on August 6, 2014. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  10. Spangler, Todd (September 25, 2013). "Target Opens Digital Video Store, Designed to Shield Kids from R-Rated Content". Variety. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  11. "Rovi Announces Intent to Pursue Sale of Rovi Entertainment Store Business and Narrows Estimates Range for Fiscal 2012" (Press release). Rovi via Globe Newswire. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  12. "Rovi Corporation Reports Second Quarter 2013 Financial Performance Announces Agreements to Sell Rovi Entertainment Store and Consumer Website Businesses" (Press release). Rovi via MarketWatch. July 31, 2013. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  13. Pringle, Sarah (November 6, 2013). "DivX likely to draw interest from strategics". The Deal. Archived from the original on July 17, 2015.
  14. Spangler, Todd (January 27, 2016). "FilmOn Buys CinemaNow Movie, TV Digital Storefront". Variety. Archived from the original on February 14, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  15. Bouma, Luke (September 7, 2017). "CinemaNow Suddenly Shuts Down Leaving Users Unable to Access Their Movies". Cord Cutters News. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  16. Raby, Mark (May 16, 2012). "CinemaNow app comes to Xbox Live". SlashGear. Archived from the original on April 23, 2016. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
  17. Takahashi, Dean (November 3, 2009). "Cinema Now movies-on-demand service to be built into Best Buy's web-connected gadgets". VentureBeat. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2016.
  18. Lawler, Richard (December 20, 2012). "Best Buy's CinemaNow opens home disc-to-digital program, makes cloud copies of DVDs for a fee". Engadget. Archived from the original on December 24, 2012. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
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