Youku Tudou Strengthens Premium Video Platform with Sony Pictures Television Partnership

Youku HQ in Beijing

Chinese online streaming video company Youku Tudou (NYSE:YOKU) has just announced an agreement with Sony Pictures Television to bring over 300 titles to its paid Youku Premium platform.

Notable films covered under the agreement include Groundhog Day and Bram Stoker’s Dracula, as well as newer releases like Men in Black, The Amazing Spider-Man, and 21 Jump Street.

The company says that subscriber growth for Youku Premium has “exceeded expectations,” saying that it’s an indication that Chinese audiences will pay for content. So far Youku Premium has about two million paid users. The service offers a number of viewing options, including paid on-demand viewing, paid subscriptions, or ad-supported viewing.

Back in July (just before the August merger with Tudou), Youku announced an agreement with NBCUniversal on a collection of feature films, and it also has a three-year agreement in place with Warner Bros’ China joint venture Warner Home Entertainment.

Other agreements have been made with Dreamworks, Paramount, Disney, and Lionsgate — and now with Sony Pictures Television on board, Youku Tudou says it has licensed offerings from all major Hollywood studios.

As of September, Youku and Tudou reach 310 million viewers per week according to figures from iResearch.