Telecom Italia (TI) and Vivendi launched an app called Studio+ which will give the operator’s customers access to exclusive content shot specifically for smartphones.

The content can be accessed on a device in HD quality over mobile networks as well as via WiFi and offline once downloaded.

Vivendi, which has a 23 per cent stake in TI, is working on content “entirely adapted to the mobility experience,” shot using “narrower angles and more dynamic screenplays”, with original series that will have 10 short episodes per season, lasting around 10 minutes each.

The French media giant is currently working on 15 complete seasons of shows from different genres, as well as a catalogue of short films, which will mean more than 200 videos altogether.

“TI is the first Italian telephone company to collaborate with us on the market launch of Studio+,” said Dominique Delport, chairman of Vivendi Content (pictured, right).

“Given the lack of content designed specifically for smartphones, we are facing a great opportunity to attract and draw in enthusiasts of short series with a high quality product of exclusive use, fascinating stories offering easily-available, great entertainment,” he added.

The service is available to TI customers for €3.99 per month or €1.49 per week.

The agreement between the firms “stresses how the development of synergies between operators and producers of premium content represents the new route for the development of unprecedented entertainment models, which will reach a new generation of spectators, offering high-quality, original digital productions,” TI said.

TI’s move comes as operators, particularly in the US, step up their video offerings. AT&T just launched a range of cross-platform video streaming services, and Verizon recently hired the former global head of networks at AwesomenessTV (in which it acquired a 24.5 per cent stake) as head of programming for its Go90 app.