Indie film lovers have something to celebrate. It was announced today that Cinedigm has acquired Fandor- a global independent film subscription service. Currently it has the largest collection of independent films, documentaries and international features. Cinedigm plans to increase the reach of Fandor over the next two years, and add their 7,000 existing film titles to the nearly 5,000 already in Fandor’s collection.
Here’s what the press release had to say:
“This acquisition of Fandor, coming on the heels of our Film Detective acquisition, solidifies Cinedigm’s position as the leading global streaming company for independent films,” said Chris McGurk, Cinedigm Chairman and CEO. “As a key element of our recently announced streaming rollup strategy, Fandor will immediately benefit from our streaming distribution muscle, huge library of independent films, Matchpoint technology, cost savings and infrastructure and synergies with our wide portfolio of enthusiast streaming channels. We fully expect an immediate EBITDA uplift from Fandor and strong revenue and profit growth going forward.”
“The paradox of the streaming revolution is that it has never been harder to discover classic, essential and new independent and foreign films,” said Erick Opeka, Chief Strategy Officer and President of Cinedigm Networks. “The founders of Fandor had the right idea, launching very early in the streaming growth cycle while still establishing a strong and resilient brand and viewer base. Our mission at Cinedigm is to enable viewers, including independent film enthusiasts, to stream their passions, and I can’t think of a streaming service that is truer to our mission than Fandor.”
“The opportunity to leverage Fandor’s passionate community of independent film enthusiasts will be integral in the service’s growth,” said Phil Hopkins, President of The Film Detective. “Being able to communicate and collaborate with this community of content creators, bloggers, and editorial writers will allow us to significantly expand Fandor into the global focal point for streaming independent films, documentaries, classics and foreign films.”
The Film Detective service trailer can be seen here: https://vimeo.com/189045960
