Samsung aims to strengthen content offerings with Yahoo!7 deal

In a move intended to bolster its content offerings for both TV and mobile devices, Samsung has obtained exclusive IPTV rights to content from Yahoo!7, a 50-50 partnership between the Seven West Media Group and Yahoo! Inc. in Australia.

The deal gives Samsung the exclusive right to offer Seven productions like "My Kitchen Rules," "Packed to the Rafters," "Home and Away" and "Better Homes and Gardens" on Samsung TVs for the next 12 months. It is also an acknowledgement that consumers who are moving to IPTV need content, Evan Manolis, head of TV content at Samsung, told BRW.

"It is important to have a strong brand behind our smart TV platform and provide rich, local, worthwhile content for consumers to persuade them to make the switch," Manolis told the online publication. "The fit between our consumers and their consumers is a match made in heaven."

Yahoo!7's social TV application, Fango, and some other programming is already available on Samsung phones and tablets, along with apps for catch-up services. The partnership between the two companies could--and probably will--be expanded to other parts of the Seven West Media business, said Joshua Martin, head of strategic innovations at Yahoo!7.

"This will be an initial step, but we'll continue to innovate and look for greater expansion of our current partnership," he said.

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