Tënk

What Tënk does

Tënk is a French documentary-focused video-on-demand platform operated as a Société Coopérative d'Intérêt Collectif (SCIC SA Tënk), legally registered in Lussas, Ardèche, and conceptually rooted in the village's decades-long documentary film ecosystem anchored by the États Généraux du film documentaire festival. The cooperative runs a dual-model streaming business: a curated SVOD catalogue of approximately 90 hand-picked documentaries refreshed monthly, plus a TVOD rental library of roughly 1,700 titles priced at €2-€4 per film, with a discovery entry price of €1 for the first month.

The technical stack is a multi-device streaming platform delivered via web browser, native iOS (14+) and Android (7.0+) applications, and dedicated Android TV and Apple TV applications released in 2022, with Chromecast and AirPlay support; streaming infrastructure is provided by Alphanetworks and feature development by Codekraft. Beyond viewing, Tënk operates Tënk Studios, a 110 sqm post-production facility opened in 2022 offering editing, colour grading, sound editing, and a mixing auditorium, available for external rental. Editorial programming is performed by a 13-member independent committee coordinated by a three-person artistic direction team, distinguishing the platform from algorithm-led streamers.

Tënk monetises through five streams: SVOD subscriptions with monthly or annual billing, TVOD rentals (roughly half the fee accrues to rights holders), institutional/collective subscriptions serving 100+ schools, universities, and libraries via code or IP-based access, pre-purchase commitments of €15,000 per film supporting 15 productions per year with a 90% success rate in accessing further funding, and recurring citizen capital raises at €100 per social share. The cooperative is owned by approximately 610 sociétaires across four colleges under one-person-one-vote governance with a 12-member board; no venture capital or private equity is involved. Distribution spans France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Switzerland, with Canada served by a separate affiliated platform (tenk.ca), supported by public-sector financial partners (CNC, Creative Europe MEDIA, Département de l'Ardèche) and marketing partnerships with Mediapart, France Inter, and major documentary festivals.

Name

Tënk

Legal name

SCIC SA Tënk

Website

https://on-tenk.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Tënk is a French documentary SVOD and TVOD cooperative platform based in Lussas, Ardèche, offering curated independent author documentaries via subscription and à-la-carte rental to individual film enthusiasts and educational institutions across French-speaking Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Documentary Streaming

NAICS

Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (51621), Broadcasting and Content Providers (516)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822), Services-Allied To Motion Picture Distribution (7829), Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

General Entertainment SVOD Platforms (MPACAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Transactional Video Platforms (TVOD/EST) (MPACAAAJ), Content Aggregation, Curation & RSS Platforms (BPAMAJAI), Transactional VOD Distribution (TVOD) (MPADAJAF)

Keywords

• Documentary streaming
• Video on demand
• SVOD platform
• Film curation
• Documentary cinema

Headquarters

HQ city

Lussas

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. SVOD Subscription: Monthly subscription providing access to approximately 90 films included in the subscription. Starting price at €1 for first month. Auto-renewal with monthly or annual billing.
2. TVOD Rental: Transaction-based rental of approximately 1,700 additional films. Prices typically €2-4 per film rental.
3. Institutional/Collective Subscriptions: Dedicated offer for schools, universities, libraries, and other institutions providing multi-user access via code or IP-based authentication. Includes quarterly viewing statistics reporting.
4. Pre-purchase Film Support: Financial support to documentary production through pre-purchase agreements valued at €15,000 per film (cash contribution and industry contribution). 90% of pre-purchased films access additional production funding.
5. Citizen Investment: Open investment rounds for citizens to become societaries. Social shares at €100 per share for individuals, €500 minimum for organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Tënk operates a subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) and transactional video-on-demand (TVOD) platform dedicated to documentary cinema, offering curated films via web, mobile, and TV applications. The platform is structured as a multi-stakeholder cooperative (SCIC) that pre-purchases documentaries to support independent filmmakers, operates post-production studios, and offers institutional access for educational and cultural organizations.

Product overview

Tënk is a subscription-based documentary film streaming platform operated by SCIC Tënk, a cooperative based in Lussas, Ardèche, France. The core offering is a dual-model video platform combining SVOD (subscription streaming of ~90 hand-curated documentaries refreshed monthly) and TVOD (rental catalogue of ~1,700 titles). Access is available across web browsers, native iOS/Android mobile applications, and dedicated TV applications for Android TV and Apple TV. The platform also encompasses Tënk Studios, a 110 m2 post-production facility supporting documentary production; an institutional subscription offer for schools and libraries; the editorial platform Le Off de Tënk; the Oh My Doc! theatrical distribution label co-founded with France Culture, Mediapart, and others; and periodic citizen investment crowdfunding rounds.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Tënk Studios: Post-production studios of 110 m2 operated by the Tënk cooperative in Lussas, featuring two editing suites, a color grading room, a sound editing room, and a 52 m2 cinema mixing auditorium. Opened in 2022.
• Oh My Doc!

Products and services

• Tënk SVOD Subscription video-on-demand service providing unlimited access to Tënk's catalog of approximately 3,000 curated documentary films for individual subscribers at €6.90/month or €69/year, with a promotional first-month rate of €1. Designed for individual documentary enthusiasts seeking curated, independent content.
• Tënk TVOD Transactional video-on-demand rental service allowing individual users to rent individual documentary films on a pay-per-view basis without committing to a subscription. Designed for occasional viewers who want to access specific titles.
• Tënk Collective (offre collective et institutionnelle) Institutional subscription product providing multi-user documentary access for schools, universities, documentation centers, libraries, community centers, and cultural venues. Includes code-based or IP-based authentication and quarterly usage statistics reporting. Pricing varies by structure type.
• Tënk Studios 110 m² post-production studio facility with €46,000 invested, available for documentary filmmakers requiring technical production infrastructure. Supports the cooperative's mission of providing end-to-end support for independent documentary creation.
• Cinéma Tënk Physical documentary screening initiative partnering with 13 cinemas under a signed charter, organizing 35 screenings and sessions since launch. Extends the streaming platform into physical exhibition spaces, enabling documentary filmmakers to connect with live audiences.
• Documentary Pre-purchase Program

Quantifiable outcome

• 90% of pre-purchased films access additional production funding (CNC, regional, or civil society)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• La Cinémathèque du documentairecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for documentary preservation and distribution, co-founder of Oh My Doc! label for theatrical release support.
• Scam – Société civile des auteurs multimédiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench authors' rights society supporting documentary creators, partnership for author compensation and film support.
• MediapartmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerIndependent media outlet partnership for audience reach and co-production opportunities.
• France Inter / Radio FrancemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerFrench public radio partnership for media coverage and audience development, co-founder of Oh My Doc! label.
• AlphanetworkscoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnical provider for streaming infrastructure and platform delivery.
• ADAV – Ateliers Diffusion AudiovisuellemajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership for public screening rights management, enabling community screenings of catalog titles.
• États Généraux du film DocumentairecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor documentary festival in Lussas, foundational partner in the Ardèche documentary cinema ecosystem.
• Visions du RéelmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSwiss documentary festival partnership for film selection and industry connections.
• URSCOPminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional union of SCOP and SCIC cooperatives, providing network and support for cooperative governance.
• Laboratoire DeVisu, Université Polytechnique Hauts-de-FranceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership for research and development in visual media.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• MUBI: MUBI is a global curated film SVOD platform specializing in independent, arthouse, and auteur cinema. It is the closest direct competitor to Tënk given the shared focus on hand-picked, non-mainstream cinema and a subscriber-supported model.
• CuriosityStream: CuriosityStream is a US-based SVOD platform exclusively dedicated to documentary and non-fiction programming. It competes directly with Tënk in the documentary SVOD niche, though with a more factual/science-leaning focus rather than auteur documentary cinema.
• DocPlay: DocPlay is an Australian documentary-focused streaming service offering a subscription catalogue of independent documentaries. Comparable to Tënk in its documentary-only positioning and curated discovery model.
• Sundance Now: Sundance Now is an AMC Networks SVOD service focused on independent films, documentaries, and foreign-language cinema. It overlaps with Tënk's curated indie and documentary positioning, targeting cinephile audiences willing to pay for specialty content.

Broad incumbents

• Netflix: Netflix is a global streaming incumbent with an extensive documentary slate including auteur and international titles. It competes with Tënk for viewer attention and rights to high-profile documentary productions, though it does not specialize in documentary cinema.
• Amazon Prime Video: Amazon Prime Video is a global streaming incumbent with a broad documentary catalogue. It competes for documentary viewers through bundled Prime memberships, reducing the relative attractiveness of a standalone niche subscription like Tënk's.
• Apple TV+: Apple TV+ is a global streaming incumbent with award-winning documentary content. It competes with Tënk for premium documentary viewers and has invested in high-profile documentary acquisitions and originals across auteur and journalistic genres.

Regional players

• France.tv: France.tv is the French public broadcaster's free streaming platform offering catch-up and original content including documentaries. It competes for the same French-speaking audience as Tënk and partners with Tënk through Oh My Doc!, while offering a free alternative that pressures subscription conversion.
• ARTE: ARTE is a Franco-German public broadcaster operating a free streaming platform with a strong documentary and cultural programming slate. It serves as both a competitor (free documentary access) and a strategic partner/co-founder of Tënk's Oh My Doc! label.

Emerging players

• AllDoc: AllDoc is an emerging French documentary streaming platform focused on independent and auteur documentaries. It is comparable to Tënk as a niche French documentary service, though smaller and earlier-stage, competing in the same addressable audience.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TenkFr
• Facebookfacebook.com/tenk.fr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tënk