Tradition minister pulls plug on ItsART mission.
ItsART, the streaming platform devoted to Italian artwork and tradition, has been put into liquidation after reportedly incurring losses of €7.5 million final yr.
The pet mission of former tradition minister Dario Franceschini, ItsART was launched in Could 2021 in response to the closure of museums, cinemas and theatres because of Italy’s lockdowns and covid restrictions.
The centre-left Francheschini hailed the web platform as “the Netflix of Italian tradition” that will provide a “digital stage” for artwork, theatre, music and opera, even after the covid pandemic.
ItsArt supplied each free and paid entry to Italian tradition, with reside and on-demand content material on provide in Italy in addition to overseas.
Nevertheless regardless of an funding of some €15 million the mission did not get off the bottom, bringing in simply €246,000 and 141,000 subscribers, in response to Italian information studies.
Critics additionally complained that the platform’s cultural content material was too much like that already provided on the channels of state broadcaster RAI.
Funding financial institution Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), managed by Italy’s finance ministry, was the principle shareholder in ItsArt, which it managed along with the Milan-based streaming agency Chili.
In November the CDP reportedly knowledgeable the tradition ministry – now headed by Gennaro Sangiuliano of the brand new right-wing coalition – that ItsArt was in critical financial issue, asking if the federal government supposed to refinance it.
The reply was unfavorable and the corporate was wound up formally on 29 December.
