UMC – Urban Movie Channel Nabs Exclusive SVOD Rights for OWN’s BLACK LOVE Docuseries
Los Angeles, CA – Following its record premiere ratings on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network last summer, UMC – Urban Movie Channel, the first premium subscription streaming service created for fans of African American and urban content, is excited to announce that it has acquired exclusive SVOD rights for the popular docuseries, BLACK LOVE. Watch trailer. Created by newlywed filmmakers Codie Elaine Oliver and Tommy Oliver (The Perfect Guy) and Confluential Films, Black Love highlights love stories from the black community and seeks to answer the burning question, “What does it take to make a marriage or relationship work?” Featured couples include Viola Davis and Julius Tennon, Meagan Good and DeVon Franklin, and Tia Mowry and Cory Hardrict.
“We created Black Love to showcase healthy, loving relationships in the Black community and it’s an absolute honor to premiere the SVOD rights on UMC, a platform dedicated to serving first-rate content to a still criminally underserved audience,” said series creators Codie Elaine Oliver and Tommy Oliver. The premiere episode drew 1.2 million total viewers making it OWN’s most-watched unscripted series debut in network history. The first episode will begin streaming at www.UMC.tv (and on various devices) on February 2, 2018 with subsequent episodes added weekly through February 23, 2018, after which all four episodes will be available to stream at any time.
In February, UMC will also present the exclusive premiere of a new romantic comedy film called COUPLES’ NIGHT. When a bored but quirky housewife becomes obsessed with her argumentative neighbors, she starts a couples’ night that sends her mild-mannered husband into a tailspin. Directed by Mark Harris (No Regrets, Black Coffee), the film stars Charles Malik Whitfield (Fox’s Empire, OWN’s If Loving You is Wrong), Reagan Gomez-Preston (OWN’s Queen Sugar, Love That Girl!), Tony Rock (Host of HBO’s All Def Comedy), Denise Boutte (Why Did I Get Married, Meet the Browns), and Clifton Powell (Bounce TV’s Saints and Sinners) with a special guest appearance from Biz Markie. Couples’ Night premieres on Friday, February 9, 2018.
“We could not be more excited to bring this groundbreaking series from Codie and Tommy Oliver, Black Love, to UMC for our subscribers to stream,” said Angela Northington, SVP of Content Acquisitions & Programming for the subscription VOD platform. “We’re kicking off February strong with the addition of the series, followed by our exclusive premiere of Couples’ Night, and with much more to come as we continue to roll out our 2018 programming.”
Additional titles coming to UMC in February include the romantic comedy film PATTERNS OF ATTRACTION and a classic throwback title from the David E. Talbert collection, LOVE ON LAYAWAY. Patterns of Attraction follows a philandering writer that realizes he must change his ways or else lose the love of his life after his longtime girlfriend gives him an ultimatum. Watch trailer. Starring Tiffany Haddish (Girl’s Trip), Omar Gooding (Baby Boy, Bounce TV’s Family Time), Paula Jai Parker (Hustle & Flow, Ray Donovan), Caryn Ward (The Game, The Rich and the Ruthless), Michael Colyar (The Rich and the Ruthless), and Trae Ireland (Chocolate City), Patterns of Attraction begins streaming on Friday, February 2, 2018. One of Talbert’s three earliest titles, Love on Layaway is a wildly inventive, laugh-out-loud journey inside the lives of three couples living in a Philadelphia neighborhood. Starring Mel Jackson (The Parkers, Deliver Us From Eva), Cassi Davis (House of Payne, Boo! A Madea Halloween), Chico Benymon (Half & Half), and Deborah Cox, Love on Layaway begins streaming on Friday, February 23, 2018.
Available at www.UMC.tv and newly added to the Google Play store for Android devices, UMC is the first premium subscription streaming service that showcases quality African American and urban entertainment across all genres from RLJ Entertainment (NASDAQ: RLJE).
Created by Robert L. Johnson, Chairman of RLJ Entertainment (NASDAQ: RLJE) and founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), Urban Movie Channel (UMC) is the first subscription streaming service created for African American and urban audiences in North America that features quality urban content and showcases feature films, documentaries, original series, stand-up comedy, and other exclusive content. UMC is available on iOS, Apple TV, Android, Amazon Channels, Roku, Amazon Fire TV & Fire TV Stick. At www.UMC.tv, UMC offers a free 7-day trial and thereafter is just $4.99/month or $49.99/year. Keep up with UMC and like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/UrbanMovieChannel and follow on Twitter/Instagram @WatchUMC.
