RTVE Play (often stylized as rtve play) is the

over-the-top media service An over-the-top media service (also known as over-the-top television, or simply OTT) is a digital distribution service of video and audio delivered Direct-to-consumer, directly to viewers via the public Internet, rather than through an Terrestria ...

provided by the Spanish public broadcaster

RTVE The Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española (; ), known as Radiotelevisión Española (''Spanish Radio and Television'', RTVE), is the Spanish national public Broadcasting, television and radio broadcaster. It is a state-owned enterprise f ...

. It was launched in Spain on 22 June 2021, replacing the old catalogue 'RTVE a la carta', created in turn in 2008.

History

The original online platform offering

content was created in 2008 under the name ''RTVE a la carta'' or simply ''A la carta'' or ''alacarta''. In late 2020, RTVE announced its intention to merge its ''A la carta'' service together with the embedded Playz streaming platform specifically dedicated to a young audience. The new service replacing alacarta in Spain was created on 22 June 2021 under the name 'RTVE Play'; the launch included the release of the beta app for

smartphone A smartphone is a mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multi ...

and tablet. Prior to the launch, RTVE did however offer its international streaming platform operating outside of Spain (launched in the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

on 8 June 2020) already under the same name 'RTVE Play'. The pay international service available in the Americas was thus ensuingly rebranded to 'RTVE Play+' (a domestic pay model for RTVE is illegal in Spain as the Spanish public service is already paid by

taxes A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...

). Initially available without registration, RTVE slated the deadline date of 15 July 2021 for compulsory (yet free) registration on the RTVE Play app, reportedly in order to offer the user "a more personalized experience" and to be able to make recommendations. Some of the earliest original programming set to release on RTVE Play include docuseries and/or Playz originals such as ''Edelweiss'', '' Grasa'' (season 2), ''Susana y el sexo'', ''

Yrreal ''Yrreal'' is a Spanish action thriller television series created by Alberto Utrera and Paula Sánchez for Playz which stars Angy Fernández and Veki Velilla. It premiered on 17 November 2021. The series blends live action footage with 2D animati ...

'', ''Lucía en la telaraña'', '' Ruiz-Mateos, el primer fenómeno viral'' or ''Raíces'', to which a number of licensed international shows such as '' Unreal'', '' Baron noir'', '' Years and Years'', '' Three Girls'', '' Happy Valley'', '' Top of the Lake'', '' The Split'' or '' Harlots'' add up. At the MIPCOM 2024, TVE announced the launch of international RTVE Play+ in Asia and Oceania (Japan, India, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Australia) for 22 October 2024.

Programming

References

External links

* {{authority control RTVE Internet television streaming services Internet properties established in 2021