Walter Presents is a
video-on-demand service of the UK's
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
, part of its
streaming platform. Launched on 3 January 2016, it specialises in foreign-language drama and comedy with English subtitles. It is named after
Walter Iuzzolino, who selects its content.
The service was later offered as an ad-free subscription service in the United States in March 2017,
and in Australia via a
Foxtel
NXE Australia Pty Ltd, trading as the Foxtel Group, is an Australian pay television company that operates cable television, direct-broadcast satellite, direct broadcast satellite television, and IPTV streaming services. It was formed in April ...
service in November 2017.
It launched in
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
in May 2020 as part of free streaming service TVNZ OnDemand (now
TVNZ+).
It has been available in Italy as an on-demand service since September 2018 through a deal between Global and
Discovery Networks.
In 2022 Walter Presents launched in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland on the premium streaming service
C More.
Production
In the UK, the service is a partnership between Channel 4 and Global Series Network. It is free to view and supported by advertisements.
[ Walter Iuzzolino began reviewing potential content for the service two years before its launch, viewing 3,500 hours of television in all.][
The service aims to avoid so-called art-house programming in favour of more mainstream productions that compete with ]Netflix
Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
and Amazon Prime for audiences already familiar with such Nordic dramas such as ''The Bridge''.[ Iuzzolino set three criteria for selection: the show must be popular in its native country, as were ''Homeland'' and ''House of Cards'' in the United States; it must be "award-winning or already critically acclaimed"; and it must have "the finest writing, directing and acting that each country has to offer...something worth our time as viewers".]Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...
and More4.[ From October 2019, Welsh-language channel S4C began to broadcast some ''Walter Presents'' series with Welsh subtitles as part of ''Walter Presents ar gyfer S4C'' (English: ''Walter Presents for S4C'') with some series available with Welsh subtitles online on S4C Clic, the channel's on-demand service.
In the US, ''Walter Presents'' (originally known as ''Walter's Choice'') is presented by PBS.]
Programmes
Reception
According to Channel 4, the 11 titles available in the first month attracted 1.1 million views on All 4.
References
External links
*
Walter Presents
' – official site
*
Walter Presents
' – official site {{flag, US
Channel 4
Video on demand services
Public Broadcasting Service