Another free, ad-supported streaming service focused on non-fiction films is launched today, this one hoping to win over the multitude of documentaries.
A joint project between Tony Hsieh (the former Zappos CEO who passed away recently) and the XTR studio, Documentary + launched with a catalog of films by several prominent directors and filmmakers, including Werner Herzog, Terrence Malick, Kathryn Bigelow and Spike Jonze, to name but a few. At launch, the service has a very wide selection of categories to choose from, including politics, sports, comedy, music and real crime, among other genres, with a specific focus on premium content. The service has more than 150 titles available at launch.
Bryn Mooser, co-founder of Documentary + and CEO of XTR, told Gizmodo that all films are licensed and that the library will change over time as some titles come out and others arrive. The objective is that the service “always remains with a high curated and personal feeling, as the [Criterion Channel] for documentaries. ”The Sundance Film Festival officially starts this week, and the company will also be looking for potential takeover opportunities.
The service is available at Workspace, mobile devices, Apple TV, Amazon and Roku. The company told Gizmodo that it currently has no plans for an ad-free version of the service as it works to increase its subscriber base. However, if demand is high enough, the service may also be open to exploiting an ad-free layer.
It may be free, but Documentary + has a fairly large group of competitors whose content libraries also include documentaries. Netflix, HBO Max, Discovery + and Hulu produce their own, for example, and services like Kanopy and CuriosityStream also have solid documentary catalogs. Most of them require monthly subscription fees (Kanopy is an exception). And offering your service for free – especially now, as so many others are launching – could help Documentary + be a good addition to other paid services.
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“There has never been a more exciting time for nonfiction – we are seeing new visionary directors emerge and streaming has given documentaries a new global audience,” said Mooser in a statement. “With Documentary +, not only are we building a home for some of the best documentaries of our time, but we are giving filmmakers another distribution option as the competition continues to increase. The COVID pandemic created this great digital acceleration and we are developing Documentary + to be a fundamental pillar in the future of the industry. “
Another day, another damn streaming servicece.
Updated to assign company quotes to CEO Bryn Mooser.