Originally owned byModern Times Group, it was launched in May 2007 asViasat On Demand.[2] It was rebranded as Viaplay in 2011.[2] Viaplay released its first original fiction title,Swedish Dicks, in 2016.[3] As of 2021[update] it was available in Denmark,Estonia, Finland, Iceland,Latvia,Lithuania, Norway, Poland, and Sweden.[4][5] Capitalizing on the popularity ofNordic noir titles, the service rolled out plans to expand to Ireland, the Netherlands and UK in November 2022, and Austria, Canada, Germany, Switzerland and the US by 2023.[4][5][6][7] Viaplay launched in the United States ahead of the previously planned schedule, initially exclusively toComcast customers, with the intention to launch a direct-to-consumer platform later.[8]
As the parent company Viaplay Group holds extensivesports rights in multiple markets, Viaplay provides sports broadcasts in most countries where it operates.
In May 2022, Viaplay announced the organisation had added theNational Hockey League and Poland-based MMA promotionKSW to its UK offering.[9] In July 2022, Viaplay Group acquired U.K.-based pay TV channel operator,Premier Sports, and rebranded it under the Viaplay name by 1 November 2022.[10][11]
On 20 July 2023, it was announced that Viaplay would lay off 25% of staff while pursuing a new strategy to focus on its core Nordic, Netherlands and Viaplay Select operations.[12] The new focus means that Viaplay will completely exit from its Baltic markets, and discontinue its low tier non-sports offering in each of its remaining international markets, including the United States and United Kingdom, in order to focus on its sports offering and the sale of non-sports content through its Viaplay Select business.
In 2024, SSBL Ltd bought back Viaplay's operations in the United Kingdom and the service was rebranded back to Premier Sports, its former name until 2022.[13] Viaplay also left the US, Canada and Baltic markets in the beginning of 2024 as part of their new strategy.
Media related toViaplay at Wikimedia Commons