BY Experience
BY Experience is a New York–based, founder-owned global distributor of live and recorded cultural programming (opera, theater, musicals, museum exhibitions) to 3,000+ cinema venues across 75+ countries, anchored by its long-standing Met: Live in HD partnership with the Metropolitan Opera.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2003
- HeadquartersBrooklyn, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What BY Experience does
BY Experience is a privately held, New York–based global cinema content distribution company founded in 2003 by Robert and Julie Borchard-Young, which licenses and distributes live and recorded cultural programming to more than 3,000 cinema venues across 75+ countries. The company's core product line centers on Met: Live in HD — the Metropolitan Opera's live satellite simulcast series, which the company has distributed globally since 2006 and through which 33+ million tickets have been sold — alongside Great Art on Screen and a catalog of recorded Broadway-style musicals including Kinky Boots, Titanic, and 42nd Street. Until March 31, 2026, the company was the exclusive global cinema distributor of National Theatre Live; it has also partnered with ESL (eSports) and TED to broaden into adjacent cultural verticals, and operates an Arts Ambassador Program for audience development.
Technically, the platform handles the end-to-end logistics of live event-to-cinema distribution: satellite capture and uplink of performances, encoding and signal delivery to participating theaters, encrypted content rights management for recorded titles, and scheduling integration with cinema operators. The underlying capability mix combines broadcast engineering, content rights administration, and a long-standing B2B operations layer with cinema venue partners. The company has been recognized with a 2008 Peabody Award, a 2007–2008 Technology and Engineering Emmy Award, and a 2009 IBC Award, and has distributed more than 180 live events cumulatively.
The business model is B2B content licensing: cinema venues pay licensing fees per event and share a portion of box office with the company, which in turn pays rights holders (e.g., the Metropolitan Opera). The company is bootstrapped and founder-owned, with no public funding history, no disclosed revenue figures, and a deliberately lean organizational footprint. The recent conclusion of the NT Live partnership (March 31, 2026) removes a second major content pillar and is the defining strategic event shaping the company's near-term trajectory, alongside active diversification into new product lines and verticals.
BY Experience firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- BY Experience
- Legal name
- BY Experience
- Website
- https://byexperience.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2003
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- BY Experience is a New York–based, founder-owned global distributor of live and recorded cultural programming (opera, theater, musicals, museum exhibitions) to 3,000+ cinema venues across 75+ countries, anchored by its long-standing Met: Live in HD partnership with the Metropolitan Opera.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
BY Experience industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Live Cinema Content Distribution
- NAICS
- Motion Picture and Video Distribution (51212)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Alternative Content Exhibition (Live Broadcasts, Concert Films, Sports, Opera) (MPADAKAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Broadcast/Recording for Live Events (OB, Multicam, Livestream Capture) (MPAGAKAI), Theater, Musicals & Performing Arts (THAJAFAB), Arts & Culture Documentaries (MPADADAI)
Keywords
Where BY Experience is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Brooklyn
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
BY Experience business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Content Distribution Licensing: BY Experience licenses cultural content (opera, theater, concerts, art documentaries) from major producers and distributes to cinema networks globally. The company serves as the Worldwide HD Distribution Representative for The Met: Live in HD (since 2006) and International Distributor for National Theatre Live (ex-UK and China, since 2009). Revenue is generated through licensing fees paid by cinemas and venues for access to their content library of hundreds of unique events.
- Venue/Booking Fees: Cinemas and performing arts centers pay fees to become host sites for BY Experience events. The company provides content, promotional materials, and coordination services while venues provide screening facilities and audience access.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Venue Booking - Custom Pricing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
BY Experience product offering
Product offeringCore offering
BY Experience acquires and distributes live and recorded alternative cultural content — opera, theater, concerts, ballet, and art documentaries — to more than 3,000 cinema screens across 75+ countries through proprietary HD broadcast technology. The company licenses these programs to cinema operators, enabling audiences to experience performing-arts events on commercial theatrical screens.
Product overview
BY Experience operates as a global cinema content distribution platform, delivering live and recorded cultural events to over 3,000 cinemas in 75+ countries. The core offerings include The Met: Live in HD (opera broadcasts), National Theatre Live (theater productions), and Great Art on Screen (art documentaries), supplemented by musical theatrical productions like Kinky Boots, Titanic the Musical, and 42nd Street. The company also distributes alternative content events including concerts, author talks, TED presentations, and eSports screenings. An Arts Ambassador Program supports community outreach, while venue booking services enable cinema partners to host events.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Metropolitan Opera Live in HD Distribution
- National Theatre Live Distribution
- Alternative Cultural Content Distribution Program
Quantifiable outcome
- 33+ million tickets sold for Met Opera Live in HD events alone
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use BY Experience
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
BY Experience technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
BY Experience partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- National Theatre (UK)coreBY Experience developed, launched, and built National Theatre Live as one of the broadest-reaching, longest-running in-cinema arts programs. As International Cinema Distributor (ex-UK/China) since 2009, BY Experience enabled over 2,000 international cinemas in 61 countries to screen NT titles. The partnership ended effective March 31, 2026.
- Metropolitan OperacoreBY Experience serves as the Worldwide HD Distribution Representative of The Met: Live in HD series from its inception in 2006 to the present. The partnership has enabled distribution of over 180 live events to cinemas in 70+ countries, with 33+ million tickets sold. The 2026-27 season features eight live events and three encore titles.
- ESL (Electronic Sports League)minorPartnership with ESL, the world's largest eSports company, to premiere a series of eSports events in cinemas worldwide starting July 2015. The series featured the world premiere of ALL WORK ALL PLAY documentary followed by two live events.
- Anne Frank FoundationminorProduced Anne Frank Parallel Stories in cooperation with the Anne Frank Foundation, featuring Academy-Award winning actress Helen Mirren guiding audiences through Anne's story.
- Fane ProductionsminorPartnered with Fane Productions for Margaret Atwood: Live in Cinemas event featuring The Testaments, captured live on stage of the National Theatre in London.
- TEDminorTED Cinema Experience brought TED2017 Conference to select cinemas worldwide in April-May 2017. TED debuted on cinema screens with its TED2016 Conference Opening Night.
- Stratford FestivalminorDistributed Stratford Festival HD productions including KING LEAR, ANTONY AND CLEOPATRA, and KING JOHN as cinema events in 2015.
- BBCminorDistributed BBC's Last Night of the Proms LIVE to movie theaters across Canada (2009-2012) and delayed basis in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Also distributed BBC Electric Proms Robbie Williams concert.
- NPR (National Public Radio)minorPresented Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! news quiz show in cinemas by NPR, WEBZ Chicago and BY Experience, with live staging to hundreds of cinemas across North America.
- Seventh ArtsminorIn conjunction with Seventh Arts, distributed fine art in cinemas including Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan exhibition walk-through in 2012.
- Roundabout Theatre CompanyminorPresented The Importance of Being Earnest: Live in HD directed by Brian Bedford, captured live from the American Airlines Theatre on Broadway in partnership with Roundabout Theatre Company and L.A. Theatre Works.
- Chicago Public Radio / Public Radio InternationalminorPresented This American Life with Ira Glass in three exclusive cinematic events in 2008, 2009 and 2012, staged and broadcast live to movie screens.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
BY Experience competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Trafalgar Releasing: UK-based global distributor of opera, ballet, and theater events to cinema networks. The most direct competitor to BY Experience, working with the Royal Opera House and English National Opera on similar live cinema distribution.
- Fathom Events: US-based distributor of alternative content including opera, ballet, concerts, and special events to cinema chains. Closest North American analog to BY Experience with comparable cinema distribution model and content categories.
- Pathé Live: European cinema distributor with a dedicated live-cinema division distributing opera, ballet, and concerts to theaters. Operates a comparable cinema-broadcast model focused on cultural events in continental Europe.
- More2Screen: UK-based distributor of cultural performances and arts content to cinema networks. Directly comparable business model, distributing opera, ballet, and theater events to cinemas globally.
- Seventh Art Releasing: Distributor of fine art and cultural documentaries to cinemas — a direct collaboration partner with BY Experience on Great Art on Screen-style content. Highly comparable in niche cultural-content cinema distribution.
Emerging players
- Marquee TV: Streaming service offering on-demand access to theater, ballet, opera, and documentaries. While not a cinema distributor, it competes for the same cultural-content consumer attention that BY Experience's cinema events target.
- National Theatre at Home: Direct-to-consumer streaming service from the National Theatre (a former BY Experience partner). Represents the alternative distribution channel NT chose after ending the cinema partnership — useful signal of how content owners may route content away from cinema distributors.
- Medici.tv: Streaming platform focused on classical music, opera, and ballet content. Represents the digital alternative to cinema distribution for the same cultural content BY Experience licenses, illustrating competitive channel risk.
Broad incumbents
- Cinedigm: Larger digital cinema and content distribution company with broader portfolio spanning streaming channels and alternative content delivery to theaters. Operates in adjacent distribution space at greater scale with public market access.
- Curzon: UK cinema chain and distributor specializing in arthouse and cultural films with some live-event programming. Larger scale operation with broader content scope, overlapping BY Experience's premium-cultural positioning.
Market position
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
BY Experience social profiles
Digital presenceBY Experience financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
BY Experience leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
BY Experience funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
BY Experience M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about BY Experience
What does BY Experience do?
BY Experience acquires and distributes live and recorded alternative cultural content — opera, theater, concerts, ballet, and art documentaries — to more than 3,000 cinema screens across 75+ countries through proprietary HD broadcast technology. The company licenses these programs to cinema operators, enabling audiences to experience performing-arts events on commercial theatrical screens.
Is BY Experience a public or private company?
BY Experience is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was BY Experience founded?
BY Experience was founded in 2003. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is BY Experience based?
BY Experience is headquartered in Brooklyn, United States, in the North America region.
How does BY Experience make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Content Distribution Licensing is the primary driver. The others are venue/Booking Fees.
Who are BY Experience's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Trafalgar Releasing, Fathom Events, Pathé Live, More2Screen and Seventh Art Releasing. Emerging players are Marquee TV, National Theatre at Home and Medici.tv. Broad incumbents are Cinedigm and Curzon.
Does BY Experience have an API?
No public API is recorded for BY Experience.
What industry is BY Experience in?
BY Experience's product category is Live Cinema Content Distribution. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPADAKAG, Alternative Content Exhibition (Live Broadcasts, Concert Films, Sports, Opera), with a secondary code of MPAGAKAI, Broadcast/Recording for Live Events (OB, Multicam, Livestream Capture). Its NAICS code is 51212 and its SIC code is 7822.