US distributor and streamer Kino Lorber has formed a joint venture with First Look Media that will encompass the companies respective North American streaming services MHz Choice and Topic.
Kino Lorber will be the majority owner of the as yet unnamed joint venture and have management oversight of both MHz, which it acquired late last year, and Topic (Topic Studios is not part of the joint venture). Both services offer American audiences access to international television series such as the MHz’s Detective Montalbano and Topic’s The Killing.
Under the joint venture, management of the services will be overseen by MHz Networks founder Frederick Thomas, with Topic general manager Ryan Chanatry and acquisitions head Jennifer Liang consulting through a transition period.
Programming for both Topic and MHz Choice will be overseen by Lance Schwulst, MHz Networks’ senior vice president of content strategy for MHz Networks. Topic streaming vice president of marketing Monica Bloom will serve as chief marketing officer for both services.
Kino Lorber president and CEO Richard Lorber said: “We’re excited to partner with First Look Media and build on the strong SVOD brand they have created with Topic streaming. As North American audiences embrace entertainment from around the world, we’re proud to now be the home for the two best-in-class streaming services for international series and films. This is a key strategic investment for Kino Lorber that will strengthen Topic streaming and MHz Choice in their complementarity and create new synergies with our world class film business.”
First Look Media CEO Michael Bloom added: “Ryan and his team identified the perfect niche in crime and thriller and built one of the most exciting streaming services available today. We’re excited to partner with Kino Lorber, with its commitment to premium international programming, in this new joint venture, firmly positioning ourselves in the growing market of specialty streaming services.”
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