Presto will be disbanded as Foxtel revamps online streaming service

FOXTEL has made a major move in the streaming wars against Netflix and its other rivals, and it means Presto will soon be no more.

Streaming service Presto, which boasts shows such as Mr Robot, will be shut down on January 31.

FOXTEL will shut down its video-on-demand service Presto in a matter of months, as it becomes a casualty of the streaming wars.

Netflix dominates the online streaming market in Australia but other services such as Presto and Stan worked steadily to gain market share.

Foxtel announced today that it would acquire Seven West Media’s interest in the joint venture and discontinue Presto on January 31.

The streaming platform, and its customers, will be rolled onto the company’s revamped streaming service Foxtel Play.

However, Foxtel Play functions differently to a video-on-demand service, such as Netflix, which allows you to binge-watch entire seasons of shows without ads.

Foxtel is restructuring its content offerings and is preparing to launch internet-protocol plans starting at $10 to $15 per month for base packages of certain channels.

Presto launched in March 2014 before Netflix entered the Australian market. Foxtel is creating more flexibility in its product and providing greater choice with no lock-in contracts but the service will exist as a kind of hybrid between pay TV and an ad-free Netflix-style service.

The move to absorb Presto into Foxtel Play means that Stan, a joint venture between Nine and Fairfax, will be the only major ad-free video-on-demand service going head to head with Netflix.

Foxtel chief executive officer Peter Tonagh said the company looked forward to future collaborations with Seven.

“We are delighted to be able to offer Presto subscribers access to the new look Foxtel Play, which we know will be highly attractive to them,” he said.

Seven West Media chief executive officer said the channel would continue to work with Foxtel, particularly in creating new programs.

The move comes as Foxtel confirmed the new look Foxtel Play streaming service would rollout in December.

“Foxtel Play will be a simpler, cheaper and more flexible IP-delivered product, which will create much better value for Australian consumers,” Mr Tonagh said.

“It is the logical step for us to take in the evolution of Foxtel’s service. The new offering will mirror the successful launch of HBO Now in the US and Now TV by Sky in the UK.”

Foxtel is partly owned by News Corp Australia, the publisher of news.com.au