The Documentary Channel, in a move that will nearly double its subscription count, has inked a carriage deal with DirecTV.
The pact, terms of which were not disclosed, will make the service available to subscribers of the top DBS provider's Total Choice and Choice Extra packages on channel 263, beginning on March 31.
Officials at the 24-hour service devoted exclusively to documentary films and the independent filmmaker community said the pact will lift its distribution base to some 25 million homes. The other primary carrier for Documentary Channel is Dish Network.
Founded in 2006 by Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning documentary filmmaker Tom Neff, the service's chief creative officer, relaunched in 2009 as a commercial service, also has a number of deals for part-time carriage on PBS stations, including WNYC-TV in New York.
"The Documentary Channel is thrilled to make available to DirecTV customers many of the best independent documentary films and related programming," said network president and CEO James Ackerman. "Great documentary films take us into worlds in which we might not otherwise have access and allow us to experience the passionate perspective of the filmmakers behind them. We are excited to share this experience and journey we so love with DirecTV customers. This agreement doubles the total number of subscribers we now reach and will have a meaningful impact on the bottom line."
With the upcoming launch, DirecTV subscribers will be able to check out the U.S. TV premiere of the five-part series, The Pyramid Code, on five consecutive Fridays, beginning April 2 at 8:30 p.m. (ET/PT). From director/producer Dr. Carmen Boulter, the series aspires to unlock the mysteries of the ancient Egyptians, relative to their technology and sacred cosmology via the exploration of the pyramids, temples and other ancient megalithic sites around the globe.
