MTS launches KION video streaming platform

MOSCOW, Russia — Mobile TeleSystems PJSC (“MTS” or “the Company”) (NYSE:MBT; MOEX:MTSS), Russia’s largest mobile operator and a leading provider of media and digital services, announces the launch of KION, an over-the-top (OTT) video streaming platform for mobile devices and smart TVs. The revamped app — available in the Google Play and Apple App stores — features thousands of films and hundreds of TV channels, and it will also be the exclusive home for a slate of original MTS and partner content.

KION aims to provide a unique offering for Russian viewers that brings together world-class licensed content with a steady stream of unique, exclusive titles — KION Originals — including feature films, documentaries, and comedy and drama series. KION’s library will also be supplemented with content from MTS partner Channel One Russia, the country’s most-watched TV network.

In addition, together with the new platform MTS Media is launching a new flexible film format — called kinostories. Viewers can choose to watch a kinostory either in a single session or, alternatively, as a series of specially-edited 10-15 minute segments. Kinostories put users in control of the viewing experience, enabling them to consume content when, where, and how they want — from a relaxed weekend evening at home to a few free minutes during the weekday commute.

MTS President & CEO Vyacheslav Nikolaev commented: “Launching an online streaming platform under a new brand is a major milestone for MTS as well as a strategic step forward. I am confident that KION will provide viewers an exhilarating experience full of excitement and emotion. This provides a great opportunity for us to strengthen brand loyalty across the entire MTS ecosystem. By tying the platform into our other services — as well as leveraging our big data and AI capabilities — KION will be able to provide customers a unique, personalized content offering at an attractive price point.”

MTS Media CEO Igor Mishin commented: “Our new streaming platform will help guide viewers through the universe of stories. KION is always online and ready to share exciting events one after another — a hypermarket of experiences. Looking ahead, we have filled our pipeline with a slate of originals, with new exclusives premiering every month in 2021. We are launching new formats and building a personalized recommendation system that will provide a qualitatively new viewing experience — in the future content will adapt to our lifestyles, and not vice versa.”

Select KION Originals appearing in 2021

• Secrets of Family Life (Секреты семейной жизни) — a daring dramedy series that tells the story of an unconventional approach to resolving family crises. In this black romantic comedy, a young couple experiences an unfortunate tragedy that strengthens their love, attraction, and affection, while also creating insurmountable problems.
• Crystalline (Хрустальный) — a police drama series inspired by a true story. A detective returns to his home town to hunt down a serial killer targeting children, but he will first have to confront his own childhood trauma.
• Masha (Маша) — a drama that tells the story of a teenage girl growing up in Russia in the 1990s. Masha dreams of becoming a singer and falls in love for the first time. A carefree childhood turns into a tragedy, which a grown-up Masha will have to resolve once and for all.
• Hustle (Афера) — a comedy series set after the COVID-19 pandemic in a small Russian village. Having suffered for years at the hands of a trio of brothers, the villagers work together to keep them quarantined by blocking the news that social distancing restrictions have been lifted.
• Durov (Дуров) — the first biopic of Pavel Durov, famed founder of the acclaimed Telegram messenger app as well as Russia’s largest social network, Vkontakte. The documentary is set to premier on April 24 at the 43rd Moscow International Film Festival, after which it will be available for streaming exclusively via KION.
• Sakharov (Сахаров) — a documentary film about the life of world-renowned Soviet physicist and human rights advocate Andrei Sakharov, who played a leading role in developing the hydrogen bomb during the Cold War. The release date (May 21) will commemorate the 100th anniversary of the scientist’s birth.
• The Germans (Немцы) — a film adaption of the novel by Alexander Terekhov about a journalist who finds himself amid a maelstrom of political intrigue, forcing him to reassess his personal values on family, friendship, and the environment.
• The Clinic of Happiness (Клиника счастья) — an erotic melodrama about the role of intimacy in the search for true happiness. A sexologist professor and founder of the “Clinic of Happiness” helps clients overcome challenges in their romantic lives. The events are based on true stories of successfully rekindling love to find joy and harmony in relationships.