Australia’s Telstra is spending about A$50 million/US$36 million on a 51% stake in Fetch TV, and will use the platform to drive upgrades to its seven-year-old Telstra TV, the company said today.

Malaysia’s Astro Holdings retains its 49% stake in Fetch, which will continue to operate standalone under current CEO Scott Lorson with Telstra as the majority shareholder.

The investment includes the costs of migrating Telstra TV subscribers to the Fetch platform.

Telstra TV, which launched in 2015 on the Roku platform, currently has 800,000 active subscribers.

Explaining the move, Telstra’s group executive of product and technology, Kim Krogh Andersen, said the underlying tech platform needed to evolve to support deeper engagement levels and future entertainment options.

“Becoming a trusted partner in the home remains an important growth opportunity for Telstra,” he said.

“As homes become more digitally connected, the integration of that technology – including the smart modem, smart meter and a platform for streaming media which can also be used for AR, VR and the metaverse – will become even more critical. While they all do different things, if they can work together seamlessly, it will help enable customers to get the most out of their connectivity,” he added.

Fetch TV currently has approximately 670,000 active subscribers through its Australian Retail Service Providers (RSP) relationships, including Optus, iiNet, Aussie Broadband, Primus and Dodo.

The transaction is subject to Australian regulatory approvals.