Telus of Canada has joined a growing number of service providers that have integrated Netflix with their leased set-top boxes.
Telus, which delivers pay-TV services under the Optik TV brand, said it will provide access to Netflix on its boxes “over the coming weeks.” It appears that Netflix will retain the billing relationship with its subscribers.
"The addition of Netflix is yet another demonstration of TELUS' commitment to making our customers' entertainment experience better and simpler," said Blair Miller, Telus’s VP-content, said in a statement. "Nearly half of TELUS' Optik TV customers are also Netflix subscribers, and making Netflix accessible to them via their Optik set-top box is a simple but powerful innovation providing access to all their home entertainment in one place.”
Telus, which relies heavily on Cisco-made boxes, joins other MVPDs that have arranged for direct integration with Netflix. Among recent moves, Cogeco, which launched its TiVo offering last October, became the first Canadian provider to announce plans to tie in the Netflix service, following in the footsteps of U.S.-based corporate cousin Atlantic Broadband.
Other MVPDs that have integrated Netflix on leased boxes or have plans to do so include WideOpenWest, Virgin Media, ComHem, Suddenlink Communications, Cogeco, GCI, Grande Communications and RCN, among others, already do so on their TiVo-powered platforms.
