Netflix in talks to air exclusive content

Netflix Inc. is close to finalizing a deal todistribute its first ever exclusive content, a political drama starring Kevin Spacey.

Reports Wednesday suggest Netflix, the online streaming service which launched in Canada last year, is in talks to air a remake of the BBC political drama House of Cards in the near future.

The rights to the series, in which Spacey plays the chief of staff to former U.K. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher,are being auctioned by Media Rights Capital. With 20 million subscribers, Netflix Inc. took in more than $1.6 billion in revenue during its last completed fiscal year.

A report in the entertainment business website Deadline(which hassince been picked up by other news agencies)says Netflix has outbid Time Warner Inc.'s HBO, whichmade its name as a broadcaster by airing popular shows such as The Sopranos, The Wire, and Boardwalk Empire, for the rights to the show. The reports say Netflix has bid in excess of $100 million for the first run of 26 episodes.

When askedfor comment by CBC News onwhether a deal was in the works or indeed if the series would be available to Canadian customers, Netflix Canada declined to do so.Netflix launched in Canada in September 2010.

The move would mark a departure for the company, which made its name first as a mail-order DVD rental firm but soon found more success by offering customers the ability to downloadmovies and televisions shows via their home computer, without necessarily requiring a television or DVD player.

Just last month, the company signed a $200 million deal with U.S. network CBS to air some of the network's stable of shows. And last summer, the company made a 5-year, $1-billion, deal with movie studios Paramount, MGM and Lions Gate for the online streaming rights to their movies.