Pluto TV launches in Sweden, Denmark, Norway with live Bellator, World RX

Pluto TV, the free-to-view streaming service owned by media giant Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS), has launched in Sweden, Denmark, and Norway with live coverage of mixed martial arts promotion Bellator and motor racing's World Rallycross Championships as part of its initial programming.

The launch of the streaming service in the region comes through Pluto TV combining with Viafree, a free streaming service owned by Viaplay Group (formerly NENT Group), which will also serve as Pluto TV’s exclusive advertising sales partner in the three countries.

After the launch, Viafree will be phased out as a stand-alone service.

Pluto TV holds the rights to mixed-martial-arts promotion Bellator, which already has a dedicated channel on the service that launched in 2020.

As part of its coverage, the channel will stream all fights from the 2022 season exclusively in the Nordics starting with Bellator 282 on June 24 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.

Fans in the region will also gain access to bonus and library content from Bellator’s archives.

Pluto TV also has the rights to the World Rallycross Championships (WRC) and will show all live events from the 2022 season, as well as archive races via a dedicated channel in Denmark and Norway.

The WRC’s Swedish event on July 2 and 3 will be the first live race covered by the new channel.

On top of live sport, Pluto TV’s Nordic offering will include popular television shows and movies.  

Tom Ryan, president and chief executive of Paramount Streaming, said: “Pluto TV launched with a mission to entertain the planet and today’s highly anticipated launch in the Nordics brings us another step closer to achieving our goal.

“Forging this alliance with a respected leader like NENT [Viaplay] further demonstrates the type of bold innovation we are employing to advance our global footprint.

“The union of Pluto TV and Viafree delivers the best of both worlds, debuting a frictionless and free streaming destination with something for everyone.”

Pluto TV, which launched in 2013, can also be accessed by viewers across platforms such as Roku, Amazon’s Fire TV, and Android TV, as well as its official app and website.