Hollywood Studio to End Geoblocking in Europe

Paramount Pictures, the studio responsible for producing recent feature films Star Trek Beyond, 10 Cloverfield Lane, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, has struck a deal with the European Commission (EC) to end geoblocking within the European Economic Area (EEA). The move means that sales of Paramount’s film properties to online distribution platforms – such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu – within the EEA are available to each and every member country without exclusion.

The EC agreement with Paramount follows an antitrust investigation into distribution contracts between Sky TV and Disney, NBCUniversal, Sony, Twentieth Century Fox, Warner Bros, and Paramount which limited available content by country borders. The investigation led to the EU Intellectual Property Office proposing an end to geoblocking within the EEA.

As part of its agreement with the EC, Paramount will address the following concerns:

1. When licensing its film output for pay-TV to a broadcaster in the EEA, Paramount will not (re)introduce contractual obligations, which prevent or limit a broadcaster from responding to unsolicited requests from consumers within the EEA but outside of the broadcaster’s licensed territory (no “Broadcaster Obligation”);
2. When licensing its film output for pay-TV to a broadcaster in the EEA, Paramount will not (re)introduce contractual obligations, which require it to prohibit or limit broadcasters located outside the licensed territory from responding to unsolicited requests from consumers within the licensed territory (no “Paramount Obligation”);
3. Paramount will not seek to bring an action before a court or tribunal for the violation of a Broadcaster Obligation in an existing licensing agreement;
4. Paramount will not act upon or enforce a Paramount Obligation in an existing licensing agreement.

Paramount’s landmark deal is the first positive step toward putting an end to restrictive geoblocking deals which, considering the recent Netflix crackdown on VPN users, cannot come soon enough.