Vimeo gets new distribution partners who still won’t lure users away from Netflix
In an effort to bulk up its Vimeo On Demand service, video-sharing website Vimeo has announced new partnerships with seven media companies, each of which will provide the site with plenty of content that still probably won’t get anyone to stop using Netflix as their online video service of choice. Originally just a place where users could upload and share videos, a la YouTube, Vimeo has recently focused on becoming a haven for independent film, pledging $10 million to support independent filmmakers who sell their work through Vimeo On Demand. Joss Whedon even used the service to premiere his own independent project, In Your Eyes, earlier this year.
Vimeo’s new partnerships will provide more content of the kind that, in the words of Vimeo VP Sam Toles, “is not served up on other platforms.” For instance, X-Treme Video will offer over 200 hours of video about extreme sports. Gravitas Ventures will provide little-known movies that star better-known actors, like Naomi Watts and Jason Bateman. And Gaiam will deliver 12 new releases per year in the yoga and fitness category.
Head here for the full list, which includes companies that will provide Vimeo with a variety of smaller films and TV shows from around the world. And while the additions are still unlikely to establish Vimeo as the new king of content, it could help build it into the kind of place that features videos you didn’t even know you wanted to watch (as opposed to Netflix, which mostly has stuff you already know you like).