It’s a “first of its kind” partnership.
That’s according to a press release today from Marriott Hotels (MAR) about its new deal with Netflix (NFLX). As part of the partnership, guests at (select) Marriott hotels can access their Netflix accounts directly from their in-room televisions. If they don’t already have Netflix, they will also be able to subscribe to the service from their room.
TechCrunch reported back in January that Marriott was considering offering Netflix, Hulu and Pandora (P) in its rooms — now it has rolled out one of those services, and the rest may not come at all: as Fast Company reports today, Marriott tested several TV streaming services, including Hulu and YouTube, and found that the “significant majority” of guests chose Netflix.
Netflix is already available in the rooms of six Marriott hotels around the U.S., including one in Manhattan. The service will launch in six more hotels this summer, and will expand to 100 by the end of the year, according to the company. Netflix will be available in “nearly all” Marriott hotels by the end of 2016, the company said.
The Netflix deal is a move to keep up with the cord-cutting times and offer guests something more modern than the traditional high-fee movies on their in-room TV sets.
More: Read more about Netflix in the new Coins2Day 500
Interestingly, the company chose to name-drop in its announcement these three Netflix shows: Orange is the New Black, House of Cards, and Marvel’s Daredevil.
Separately, Netflix on Tuesday approved a big increase in the number of shares the company is authorized to issue — the first step toward a possible stock split. At the company’s annual meeting, Chief Executive Reed Hastings said the management will seek approval from the board of directors to pursue a stock split, Reuters reported.
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