Netflix has announced that they have reached an agreement with Warner Bros. and CBS on a multi-year licensing deal to stream CW Network programming.
Netflix will gain access to more than 700 hours of programming from the CW which would include previous-season episodes of several flagship series. The content isn’t exclusive; CW material can be made available via traditional syndication windows, electronic sell-through services and authenticated cable providers.
Eight dramas from the fall 2011 lineup will be made available, including new shows like “Ringer”, “Hart of Dixie” and “The Secret Circle.” Returning series include “The Vampire Diaries”, “Gossip Girl”, “90210”, “Supernatural”, “Nikita” and mid-season series, “One Tree Hill”.
Previous seasons of “The Vampire Diaries”, “Gossip Girl”, “One Tree Hill” and “Nikita” will be available to watch instantly on October 15, with previous seasons of “Supernatural” and “90210” beginning in January 2012.
“We have long admired the CW’s ability to connect so passionately and directly with a very important and difficult to reach demographic,” said Ted Sarandos, Chief Content Officer at Netflix. “This is programming for the on-demand generation and we hope this agreement deepens the relationships viewers already have with these powerful entertainment brands”.
Sarandos couldn’t have said it better as CW programming is typically geared towards teens and 20-somethings.
Meanwhile any good press for Netflix is welcomed news. Things went south for the streaming and DVD-by-mail provider over the summer when a price increase was responsible for nearly a million subscribers abandoning the service. Last month it was reported that Netflix had lost their Starz contract and content would be pulled on February 28, 2012. And in a somewhat bizarre move, Netflix spun off their DVD-by-mail service into a new product called Qwikster, only to renege on the idea just a few days ago.
