Movie rental company Netflix Inc. enters Canada with streaming service

Netflix enters Canada with streaming service

NEW YORK — Netflix Inc. has entered into the Canadian market with instant streaming video.

The movie rental service said Wednesday that this is the first time it is expanding outside the U.S.

The company, based in Los Gatos, Calif., also announced Canadian license agreements with major motion picture studios such as Lionsgate, MGM Studios, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, among others. It also struck deals with top Canadian distributors Alliance Films, Maple Pictures, eOne and Mongrel.

The company said the service is available in English for now but French will be added in the future.

Shares of Netflix rose $7.04, or 4.8 percent, to $154.24 in afternoon trading Wednesday. Earlier the stock hit a 52-week peak of $156.67.