Netflix strikes movie deal with Weinstein Co.

BEVERLY HILLS, California (AP) ― In a drive to add subscribers, Netflix has expanded on a movie licensing deal with The Weinstein Co. that will add more films to its Internet video service beginning in 2016.

The multi-year agreement announced Tuesday builds upon a partnership that Netflix Inc. forged with Weinstein Co. last year. That deal gave it the streaming rights to the Oscar-winning film, “The Artist,” as well other foreign films and documentaries from the 8-year-old studio.

The new deal gives Netflix the rights to show all movies released by Weinstein Co. and its subsidiary, Dimension Films, before they appear on pay-TV channels. That makes it more competitive with channels like HBO and Showtime that have traditionally been the first place to see films after their theatrical runs.

Investors applauded Netflix’s latest coup as the company’s stock surged to a new two-year high of $273.53 before retreating slightly. The shares rose $13.51, or more than 5 percent, to finish at $273.29 on Tuesday.

Netflix’s exclusive arrangement with Weinstein Co. begins with films released in theaters during 2016. That’s around the same time Netflix will begin showing films for the first time outside a movie theater from The Walt Disney Co., part of an agreement announced last year.