Warner Bros International Television Distribution (WBITV) continued its expansion into subscription VOD today [October 13] with a licensing deal for On Demand Deutschland (ODD) to carry between Warner TV in Germany, Austria and German-speaking Switzerland.

ODD, a joint venture between On Demand Group (ODG) and Tele Munchen Gruppe (TMG), will carry the service via its partners in the German-speaking territories. Programming will include films from the Batman, Danny Ocean and Lethal Weapon franchises as well as TV titles like Friends, Nip/Tuck and ER.

'This agreement with ODD reaffirms our commitment to the branded services business and marks our first such channel in both Austria and German-speaking Switzerland,' WBITV president Jeffrey R Schlesinger said. 'We want to provide viewers a legal and reliable way to watch our major movie and television titles conveniently whenever they want on demand.'

'This deal is a key strategic deal for us to be able to offer our operating partners the ability to offer attractive SVOD services to drive VOD penetration and viewing rates,' ODD joint CEO Tony Kelly said.

'We are planning a major push in the growth of VOD and SVOD services throughout the territory over the next 12 months and the agreement with Warner is a major addition to the appeal of our content service offer,' ODD joint CEO Bernd Schloetterer added.