Netflix acquires global streaming rights to 'Seinfeld'

Sept. 16 (UPI) -- Netflix announced on Monday that it has acquired the global streaming rights to classic comedy series Seinfeld with the show set to arrive on the platform in 2021.

Netflix made the deal with Sony Pictures Television, which controls the distribution of Seinfeld. The agreement keeps the show exclusively on Netflix for five years.

The streaming service will also offer Seinfeld for the first time in 4K resolution.

All 180 episodes of Seinfeld currently appear on Hulu with that deal, first reported in 2015, ending in 2021. Amazon holds the streaming rights internationally but those will be required by Netflix.

Seinfeld originally ran for nine seasons on NBC from 1989 to 1998. It followed the misadventures of Jerry Seinfeld and his friends George (Jason Alexander), Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and Kramer (Michael Richards) in New York City.

Seinfeld, who created the show with Larry David (Curb Your Enthusiasm), also has his interview series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee set up at Netflix.

"Seinfeld is the television comedy that all television comedy is measured against," Netflix's chief content officer Ted Sarandos said in a statement. "It is as fresh and funny as ever and will be available to the world in 4K for the first time."

"Seinfeld is a one-of-a-kind, iconic, culture-defining show," Sony Pictures Television Chairman Mike Hopkins said in a statement. "Now, 30 years after its premiere, Seinfeld remains center stage. We're thrilled to be partnering with Netflix to bring this beloved series to current fans and new audiences around the globe."

Netflix acquiring Seinfeld comes after the streaming service is poised to lose fellow comedy sitcoms Friends to WarnerMedia's HBO Max service in 2020 and The Office to NBCUniversal's upcoming streaming service in 2021.