With over a million Dominicans living in the United States, and even more when you count their American-born children who still rep for Quisqueya la bella, it was only a matter of time before some imaginative impresario dreamt up a 21st-century scheme to get Dominican content to overseas audiences. Of course, you could always pay exorbitant cable fees for a chance to catch Telesistema on your Time Warner cable box, but even so, hourly programming doesn’t really jibe with how we consume content in 2016.
Enter Pelidom, a new app that allows subscribers to access a treasure trove of Dominican film and television for a small monthly fee, allowing stateside Dominicanos to stay up on the latest films, series, and TV programs from the comfort of their phone. Naturally, a service dubbed the “Dominican Netflix” wouldn’t even be possible if RD wasn’t already pumping out a steady stream of popular cinema that’s been blowing up box offices in Quisqueya (and in neighboring Borinquen) but after years of growing activity, Dominican film and television is finally ready to take its show on the digital road.
The service was dreamed up by Alfonso Rodríguez and his partner José Delio Ares, who is known for his work as a trailer editor in the Dominican film industry. After formalizing their idea, the two digital entrepreneurs struck deals with local producers that pay dividends for each minute streamed on the platform. Unfortunately, such a high-tech endeavor couldn’t be done entirely in-house and Pelidom’s transmission technology spans oceans and continents, from Europe and Mexico, and finally to your tablet in Washington Heights.
The platform launched on April 15 for computer and mobile, with a direct-to-television option still pending release. While Pelidom’s viability has yet to be proven, its mere existence is testament to Rodríguez and Ares’ vision and tenacity. Not to mention the love Dominicanos maintain toward their culture both aquí and allá.
