YOU On Demand entered China under a 20-year exclusive contract from the government to run national VOD services. Like other foreign companies entering the Chinese market, its’ doing this via a joint venture—in this case with the Chinese broadcaster CCTV-6 and its pay-TV arm, China Home Cinema. Through that partnership, YOU On Demand’s VOD service is already in 3 million Chinese cable homes equipped with digital set-top boxes via carriage deals with four local cable systems. It is the leading transactional VOD service in China, controlling about 88 percent of the market.
YOU On Demand has been able to entice American studios with a “anything is better than nothing” proposition, given the traditionally rampant piracy of U.S. video content in the region.
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By the end of 2012, YOU On Demand expects to be in 12 million homes with additional cable deals in place.