New Frontier President Ken Boenish told XBIZ that the company has tested the Penthouse brand with the other major brand in the category and found that consumers regard Penthouse as hotter, more erotic and more modern than its main competitor.
"Now we'll be armed with a powerful trademark," Boenish said. "We believe for the first time in the history of cable and set TV, there will be two brands of iconic nature in the space, and we believe we're going to be able to give Playboy TV a real run for their money."
Though Boenish said he could not disclose its programming plans, Penthouse TV will showcase popular Penthouse-branded content, such as Penthouse Forum, Penthouse Pets and original programming.
Penthouse Media Group CEO Marc Bell told XBIZ that he looks forward to seeing what New Frontier can do with his company.
"They have a great platform in both linear and video-on-demand and they have done an amazing job with the TEN network," Bell said. "From an image perspective, we’re leveraging one of the most prominent adult titles in the world.”
New Frontier CEO Michael Weiner said he expects to see Penthouse-branded VOD content on TV within the next six months, and the Penthouse TV linear channel will launch within two years.
Within the next three years, he said, Penthouse TV will be available to 50 million U.S. households.
