Canadian cord-cutters are getting a big boost to their free TV offerings today. The free TV streaming service Pluto TV is launching for all Canadian customers on Thursday, Dec. 1, and is partnering with Canadian media company Corus Entertainment for the widest possible distribution.
Pluto TV offers more than 20,000 hours of movies and TV shows, and will make over 100 channels available for its Canadian rollout. The offerings will include the likes of Pluto TV Comedy, Pluto TV Drama, Pluto TV Action, and Christmas 365, along with show-dedicated channels for “NCIS,” “Hawaii Five-0,” “The Love Boat,” and “Judge Judy.”
“I am thrilled to officially introduce Pluto TV to Canadian audiences, bringing them a fantastic lineup that combines the best of Corus’ Canadian content, Paramount’s deep library and more than 100 third-party partners,” Pluto EVP Olivier Jollet said. “The union of Pluto TV and Corus delivers the best of both worlds, debuting a free streaming destination for fans, and creating opportunities for advertisers, offering a premium inventory in a brand safe TV environment.”
The service is also planning to offer exclusively Canadian content to celebrate its expansion north of the border. Pluto TV in Canada will feature more than 30 channels dedicated to some of the most iconic Canadian content, with six Home & DIY channels featuring household names like Bryan and Sarah Baeumler, Sarah Richardson, Sebastian Clovis, and Scott McGillivray.
The service will also carry four Food channels that feature Canadian celebrity chefs like Anna Olson and Lynn Crawford, five Kids Channels that feature Canadian darlings like Max and Ruby and Franklin, iconic series like “Degrassi: The Next Generation,” and 14 National and Local news & opinion channels delivering Canadian newscasts from coast to coast.
“The debut of Pluto TV marks the next evolution of streaming in Canada, as Corus celebrates the launch alongside Paramount Global as partners in both content and ad sales,” Corus Entertainment EVP Troy Reeb said. “Corus is home to Canada’s biggest portfolio of original content in the food and lifestyle space, and the stories that connect with Canadians where they live through Global News. Our strategy has always been rooted in placing more content in more places, and Pluto TV further advances this goal. We are also thrilled to expand our offering for advertisers with the addition of Pluto TV’s huge inventory of premium video.”
It’s a great time to be expanding the service to new territories, as Pluto recently announced it would be adding more than 6,000 episodes of classic Paramount shows like “Star Trek,” “Frasier” and “Beverly Hills 90210.” The service also added two separate channels for the popular “CSI” spinoffs “CSI: Miami” and “CSI: New York” in September.
According to Paramount’s most recent quarterly earnings report, Pluto TV has 72 million monthly active users. That number is sure to get a big boost thanks to the fact that the service will now be available to all Canadian streaming customers.