Warner Bros. Buys DramaFever Video Service

Warner Bros. is acquiring subscription and on-demand video service company DramaFever from a Japanese telecommunications and Internet company. Financial terms of the deal between the Burbank studio and SoftBank Group Corp., in Tokyo, were not disclosed. SoftBank had purchased DramaFever, in New York, in 2014 for a reported $100 million. DramaFever was launched in 2009 and has a flagship channel offering hundreds of Korean television and film dramas, as well as programming from other countries to subscribers in the U.S. and 20 other countries. The acquisition is part of a strategy by Warner Bros. parent Time Warner Co. to reach audiences directly. Craig Hunegs, president of business and strategy for Warner Bros. Television Group, called the deal a great fit for the studio because its resources will be able to enhance and grow the DramaFever channel. “We are bringing to Warner Bros. a great and talented team that will move quickly with our own distribution and creative teams to create and build more (over-the-top) services,” Hunegs said in a prepared statement. DramaFever co-founders Seung Bak and Suk Park remain with the company and will report to Hunegs. It will continue to operate under the DramaFever brand with offices staying in New York.