• by Fern Siegel , October 20, 2020

Cinedigm has enlarged its inventory and AVOD reach by acquiring the two streamers: The Film Detective and Lone Star.

The Film Detective counts 3,000 films and TV series, such as the Cary Grant-Rosalind Russell screwball comedy “His Girl Friday,” noir thriller "DOA" and the WWI classic “A Farewell to Arms.”  It has an estimated 10,000 individual film and TV episodes.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The two new digital channels — The Film Detective and Lone Star — will be integrated into Cinedigm's existing ad-supported streaming networks. The Film Detective debuted six years ago and has carriage deals with Dish Networks’ Sling TV, Sinclair Broadcasting Group’s STIRR, Plex, Distro TV and Vizo.

Lone Star, which specializes in classic Western films, such as "Tulsa" and "One-Eyed Jacks," and TV shows like "Bonanza," is currently distributed on Sling TV ad Distro TV.

Film Detective founder-CEO Phil Hopkins remains, but with a new title: president of The Film Detective. The streamer will continue to operate independently.

Chris McGurk, Cinedigm Chairman and CEO, stated: “The Film Detective’s library is currently profitable, and with synergies and expanded distribution, we believe we can quickly and significantly increase both revenues and profits from both the library and The Film Detective’s two streaming channels.”

Cinedigm already has recent distribution deals with more than 70 digital platforms in 180+ territories, including NBC Peacock, Google, Redbox, Local Now, Plex and Fuse, in addition to existing AVOD partnerships with Tubi, Pluto, Vudu, Amazon and Roku.

The company will utilize Matchpoint, its tech platform, to expand distribution for the two new channels.