The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll gets the hunk of love flowing.
The Elvis Presley Channel is now available on US platforms representing over 100 million devices, and offers a free, continuous stream of Elvis concerts, documentaries, specials, movies, as well as other lifestyle and entertainment programming. The channel is operated by Cinedigm, which it launched in partnership with Elvis Presley Enterprises and Authentic Brands Group.
“It’s about honoring Elvis and the brand, and doing it in a big way,” said Eric Opika, chief strategy officer and president of Cinedigm. “Elvis Presley is a creative artist whose universal appeal transcends generations and a diverse group of fans.”
The Elvis Channel contains two 12-hour blocks (aka “wheels”) of content. Cinedigm will update programs regularly on the channel, with over 175 hours of Elvis and neighboring Elvis material expected to air each month.
Programming on the channel will include movies and specials such as “Singer Presents… Elvis” (also known as “The ’68 Comeback Special”) and “Elvis Aloha From Hawaii,” both from the TV broadcast and unedited versions of the TV movie “Elvis by the Presleys.” “
Themed programming groups include Elvis’s favorites, Friends of Elvis, Elvis-Inspired Reality and Lifestyle Programming, the African-American artists who inspired Elvis, and the 50 Rock N’ Roll Rebel films. The channel is also packed with some of Presley’s favorite TV shows and movies, including “The Beverly Hillbillies”, John Wayne movies like “Angel and the Badman”, “Blue Steel”, “Riders of Destiny” and movies starring Bruce Lee – who was an Elvis fan, And vice versa – such as “Warrior’s Journey” and “Man, Legend”.
Originally, Cinedigm was looking forward to an early 2022 launch of the Elvis Presley Channel. But the company decided to time the release of Warner Bros. “Elvis,” directed by Baz Luhrmann and starring Tom Hanks and Austin Butler, opened nationwide on Friday, June 24, according to Cinedigm Chairman and CEO Chris McGurk.
Elvis Presley’s channel development stemmed from Cinedigm’s 2020 launch of Bob Ross, equipped with endless reboots of his favorite public television series, “The Joy of Painting.” “After the resounding success of Bob Ross, a lamp went off in our heads and we set the radar back for similar opportunities,” McGurk said.
The free, ad-supported Elvis Presley Channel (FAST) is now available in the US on LG Channels, Amazon Freevee (formerly IMDb TV), Vizio’s WatchFree+, Comcast’s Xumo, Plex, and Local Now from Allen Media Group and Dish Network’s Sling TV. In addition, Xfinity What to Watch on Xumo will feature a curated selection of films and documentaries from The Elvis Channel during the prime time period beginning on the weekend of July 2, and running weekly for the remainder of July.
Currently, Elvis Presley’s channel is not available on three of the most popular free streaming services: Roku’s Channel, Paramount’s Pluto TV, and Tubi. “We have conversations brewing with everyone” in the space and that Cinedigm expects the channel to be “fully distributed” in time, Obika said.
In addition to Luhrmann’s “Elvis,” this year Graceland will celebrate the 45th anniversary of Elvis’ death with Elvis Week 2022 from August 9-17 in Memphis. Netflix is set to release Elvis’ animated comedy series “Agent King” and Sony Music plans to release two Elvis albums later this year.
Obika said the renewed interest in Elvis Presley has made it easier for Cinedigm to move forward with the channel, noting that internet searches for the artist are the highest in a decade.
“Elvis fandom is incredibly passionate, and when it comes to serving enthusiastic fan bases, nobody does it better than Cinedigm,” said Matt Abruzzo, senior director of entertainment brand management at ABG, which owns Elvis Presley Enterprises.
With the Elvis Presley Channel, Cinedigm is expanding its collection of audience-focused free and subscription-based broadcast channels, including AsianCrush, Bloody Disgusting, Screambox, Comedy Dynamics, CONtv, Dove Channel, Docurama, El Rey Network, Fandor and Country Network.
Presley, who died in 1977, won three Grammy Awards (and was nominated for 14) and sold more than a billion records worldwide. King has also starred in 33 films and has appeared in several TV shows. Graceland, Elvis’ home in Memphis, claims to be the second most visited home in the United States after the White House, attracting more than 600,000 visitors annually.
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