BritBox

Though not officially described as its successor, BritBox has been likened to an earlier attempt by UK public service broadcasters (PSBs) (BBC Worldwide, ITV plc and Channel 4) to create an online video-on-demand download service, codenamed "Project Kangaroo" in November 2007. This followed the launches of the broadcasters' own video-on-demand services.

On Wednesday, 4 February 2009, Project Kangaroo was blocked by the then Competition Commission.[20]

The commission stated that the case surrounding Kangaroo was about the control of valuable UK-originated TV content. "BBC Worldwide, ITV and Channel 4 together control the vast majority of this material, which puts them in a very strong position as wholesalers of TV content to restrict competition from other current and future providers of video-on-demand services to UK viewers," said Peter Freeman, the chairman of the Competition Commission, in its final report on Project Kangaroo. "We thought viewers would benefit from better video-on-demand [VoD] services if the parties – possibly in conjunction with other new and/or already established providers of VoD – competed with each other."

A Channel 4 spokesperson said at the time, "This is a disproportionate remedy and a missed opportunity in the further development of British broadcasting."

After the planned Project Kangaroo was blocked, the system's assets were sold to transmitter firm Arqiva and this led to the development of the service SeeSaw, which operated from February 2010 to October 2011, with content from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4, and Channel 5, some of which (such as Doctor Who) now appears on BritBox.

Since the rise of Netflix and subsequent other Subscription Video on Demand services (SVODs), European PSBs and media companies, in particular, have started to find ways to compete with the increasing dominance of American SVODs, and many old rivalries have also been put aside in Europe and to collaborate by creating joint SVODs, such the like of BritBox but also France's Salto (backed by networks TF1, France Télévisions and M6), and German-based Joyn (a joint venture between ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery).[21] Such actions are motivated by reports showing younger generations shunning terrestrial TV, and PSBs have been told to adapt to avoid becoming insignificant and left out.

Following increased competition from the streaming giants on the public service broadcasters, the BBC (through BBC Worldwide) and ITV announced plans to create a Netflix-style TV service. Talks between the BBC and ITV to launch this streaming service took place in March 2016, with NBCUniversal also initially in the talks.[22] The BBC and ITV announced several shows they would be running on Britbox including New Blood, Tutankhamun, The Moonstone, In The Dark, Cold Feet and crime series Silent Witness on US launch.[23] BritBox's launch in the United States was officially announced in December 2016, with it launching on 7 March 2017.

On 14 February 2018, BritBox launched in Canada.[24]

In February 2019, it was announced that BritBox would be launched in the UK later in the year as a rival to Netflix.[25] Journalist Mark Lawson likened the proposed project to BBC Worldwide's previous failed platform, Project Kangaroo, which was expected to launch in 2008, and described it as "bizarre" and "hugely risky".[26] In March 2019, Channel 4 confirmed interest in collaborating with the BBC and ITV.[27] McMafia, Last Tango in Halifax, Les Misérables and the sitcom Gavin & Stacey were some of the first programmes to be confirmed available on the UK version on launch.[27]

In July 2019, the BBC and ITV announced they had signed an agreement to launch BritBox in the UK in the last quarter of 2019.[28]

On 20 September 2019, ITV announced they had reached a deal with ViacomCBS for Channel 5 and Comedy Central UK content.[29] This was followed by an announcement on 27 September that Samsung TVs, Freeview Play and YouView would be the first distribution platforms[30]

In October 2019, BritBox launched its "testing phase" (beta) in the United Kingdom, in which users can sign up for a free trial to have a "snapshot of what will be there at launch".[31]

One day before UK launch, on 6 November 2019, the Guardian reported that Channel 4 is to join BritBox after the two signed a 3-year deal to provide 1000+ hours of content from All 4 "with a range of comedy, drama and non-scripted programmes from across the service, including new series, and for the first time to any streamer, an exclusive Film4 curated service featuring iconic British films".[32][33] This means for the first time, all the UK's traditional channels have managed to successfully bring together programmes on a single streaming service. Channel 4 content will be available on BritBox from April 2020 and Film4 content from September 2020, with recently aired content being only available on BritBox 31 days after the airing of the last episode on Channel 4.[33] Channel 4 currently has not taken an equity stake in BritBox.

In March 2020, ITV described BritBox as "on plan" following its UK launch last November. The majority-owner in the BBC-ITV streaming venture reported a "strong growth" in subscribers, but didn't report any specific numbers.[34]

On 5 March 2020, BBC and ITV announced that BritBox is to launch in Australia, the service would bring Australians "an unrivalled collection of great British TV shows, and will build on the successful launch and operation of the service in both North America (the USA and Canada) and most recently in the UK". British content from across the past decades, including classic and contemporary box sets from the UK, would be directly available to Australian viewers via a wide range of mobile and connected home devices.

BritBox Australia will be run as a 50/50 joint venture partnership between ITV and BBC Studios, and ITV says, the service will draw on the experience of the teams and technology used to successfully launch BritBox in North America and the UK while also recruiting a local team to conduct Australian operations.[4]

On 21 August 2020, ITV and BBC Studios announced they're set to invest more than A$35 million (€21.2m) into BritBox Australia, which is scheduled to launch in late 2020. BBC Studios and ITV will both invest A$17.7m ($12.7m) into the new SVoD platform over the next three years. ITV has since confirmed to the London Stock Exchange that BritBox Australia is on track to launch on time despite the COVID-19 pandemic, following the confirmation of investment from the UK broadcaster's subsidiary "ITV SVOD Australia Pty Ltd" into the BritBox Australia Partnership (branded as "BritBox Australia") over a period of three years.[35][36]

The service launced in Australia on 23 November 2020, which ITV states is recognised globally as "Doctor Who Day".[6]

On 15 October 2019, BBC Studios global distribution president, Paul Dempsey, admitted there were more markets where the UK-skewing service could work. Alongside the launch of BritBox in Australia, taking the service into its fourth market, BBC Studios and ITV have announced that they will continue to evaluate new opportunities for the roll-out of BritBox in additional territories around the world.

On 27 July 2020, BritBox announced plans to expand the service to 25 more countries across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, South America and Africa. It was not specified which countries BritBox is targeting or what timeframe the rollout is expected to be completed.[37][38] Following the announcement, ITV CEO Carolyn McCall said: “This international expansion plan will firmly establish BritBox as a global premium brand in a rapidly growing sector” and BBC Studios CEO Tim Davie added: “BritBox has very quickly found a place in viewers’ hearts and we know there is further appetite amongst international audiences who love great British content.”

In late September 2020, ITV group director, SVOD, Reemah Sakaan addressed the plans to ramp up the service’s international presence, she said that BritBox would primarily target markets which consume large amounts of English-language entertainment including large ones such as India, as well as "passion"-driven markets such as the Nordic countries. She said that the Joint venture would look at different structures depending on the specific opportunity, with some potentially taking a B2B2C (Business-to-Business-to-Consumer) form rather than a direct D2C (Direct to Consumer) approach, i.e. BritBox partnering with a local distributor or service provider. She added that BritBox is "focused on moving as fast as we can" into international markets.[39]

On 5 December 2019, ITV's subscription video on demand Group Director Reemah Sakaan said in an interview that the service in North America had reached profitability;[40] this was followed in 2020 by news that the service there had surpassed 1 million users.[15] A study commissioned by the UK media regulator Ofcom previously predicted that BritBox could have 2 million UK subscribers by the year 2023, alongside newly launched US-based SVODs Disney+ and Apple TV+. Following the Coronavirus pandemic and frequent national and local lockdowns, in August it was reported BritBox had surpassed 1.2 million subscribers in North America. BBC Studios said the streaming service "went from strength to strength, reaching 1.2 million subscribers in North America after year-end to become the fastest-growing targeted SVOD service."[17][18]

On 6 October 2020, it was announced that Soumya Sriraman would depart as BritBox US and Canada's president, following the announcement that BritBox had reached 1.5 million subscribers in the US and Canada. The North American service, was reported to exceeded all company targets and, according to Parks Associates OTT tracker, remains the fastest-growing targeted standalone SVOD service to have launched within the last three years.[41][16] On 23 October, it was announced Emily Powers would lead the North American service when Soumya Sriraman departs at the end of October.[42][43]

In September 2017, BritBox released a reconstruction of the Doctor Who story The Wheel in Space using the surviving episodes and reconstruction using Tele-snaps.[49] In July 2018, The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco made its debut, the first original drama series in which BritBox held a direct production role.[50]

More original content is set to be commissioned and produced for 2020, following the platform's UK launch, with the BBC Media Centre stating "The first new show is expected to be commissioned soon and will be available to BritBox viewers from 2020".[51] The goal is to offer exclusive content only available on BritBox, rather than BBC and ITV's UK VOD services BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub. The annual budget for original programmes will be in the tens of millions of pounds according to BBC News.[52]

ITV has pledged to invest up to £65m in the joint venture over the next two years, and the BBC has said their pledge would be in the "tens of millions".[53]

It was confirmed in March 2020 that the first original commission to be shown on Britbox UK would be a revival of the satirical puppet show Spitting Image.[54] The series, featuring 100 new puppets, debuted on 3 October 2020.[55]

In addition to containing the catalogues of BBC and ITV television, BritBox includes content from Channel 4 (including Film4), and ViacomCBS through the UK channels Channel 5 and Comedy Central.

Other potential networks to offer content or ownership of BritBox include: NBCUniversal (owned by Comcast) and BT. Such collaboration would greatly increase BritBox's catalogue and financial resources when competing with other streaming platforms like Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video. BT and NBCUniversal were reportedly in early talks with BritBox, but the progress of the talks have yet to be stated, with NBCUniversal investing in their streaming service, Peacock in the US from 2020[67] and its parent Comcast owning Sky's UK streaming service Now TV, making full collaboration with NBCUniversal unlikely. BT has since signed a partnership with BritBox in which the service will complement its content.

In the early days of BritBox, Channel 4 was reportedly in talks with BritBox for a long period, ITV chief executive Carolyn McCall confirmed to RadioTimes.com that talks are "continuing" with Channel 4 and said that they will "welcome Channel 4 to BritBox".[68] On 6 November, the Guardian reported that Channel 4 is to join BritBox, with its content available on the service from April 2020.[32]

However, Channel 4, a publisher-broadcaster,[69] must commission UK content from independent production companies and currently works with around 300 companies across the UK every year.[33] As such, Channel 4 potentially lacks the streaming rights to many of the shows it broadcasts. Many independent broadcasters potentially waive these rights to strike other deals with larger SVODs (for outside UK rights) while retaining control over their intellectual property. This would therefore potentially cause the UK platform to have differing content from the international platforms.

Content co-produced between British broadcasters and larger SVODs like Netflix and Prime Video are not likely to be available on all or most BritBox platforms.[70] This includes shows like the ITV Studios produced, BBC series Bodyguard, which a BritBox spokesperson said "Can't come back home", adding that "going forward, [BritBox] won't licence things to Netflix and Amazon in the first place because we now have a home, a streaming service in the UK".[71]

With programming rights becoming an important issue for BritBox, the BBC and ITV have worked to keep programming rights by making deals, purchasing production companies (as with ITV Studios) or producing content for each other.[72]

In September 2020, BritBox UK's managing director, Will Harrison said in terms of distribution, BritBox UK's availability had expanded to some 21 million devices – equating to some 13 million homes in the UK – meaning that BritBox didn't need a pay-TV distribution partner, although Harrison admitted that BritBox would like to continue those relationships, given the benefits of integration and marketing with their partners, "We continue to have those conversations.", meaning BritBox's focus is primarily on developing direct relationships and device rollouts rather than developing relationships with platforms. He advised that in early October 2020, BT was launching an offer for its broadband customers to get six months BritBox for free on its YouView box. "That's eight million BT broadband homes."[19]

Harrison also added that expansion of catch-up windows for iPlayer and ITV Hub meant that BritBox was also looking at non-exclusive content. Although he clarified that two-thirds of content on BritBox should remain fully exclusive "so we can live with a bit of overlap". He said that BritBox could also act as a source of complete box sets alongside the catch-up services.[73]

* after airing, not all content is expected to be on BritBox during the stated time frame.

This may not apply to all platforms.

A big part of the BritBox catalogue is the extensive archives of the public service broadcasters, BritBox faces the challenge of hosting content which contains outdated stereotypes and opinions. In response to this, BritBox has announced that it would not include classic homegrown series that are deemed to be inappropriate for modern audiences.

BritBox bosses have said a range of older shows, such as the BBC's Till Death Us Do Part and It Ain't Half Hot Mum, as well as ITV's Love Thy Neighbour, will not appear on the service because of content deemed racist or otherwise unacceptable.[84] Reemah Sakaan, the senior ITV executive responsible for launching the subscription video-on-demand service, said "We also recomply everything that goes on to BritBox [with modern TV viewing standards]. There's also the ability to create bespoke warnings around key programming."

Sakaan confirmed that Till Death Us Do Part, first aired on BBC1 in 1965, which features the bigoted character Alf Garnett, and ITV's 1970s series Love Thy Neighbour, a sitcom about a West Indian couple who move next door to a White British couple, will not appear on the service. Some individual episodes of the BBC's Only Fools and Horses and Doctor Who serial from the original run (The Talons of Weng-Chiang, 1977) are also deemed problematic. In the Doctor Who serial, people of Chinese extraction are termed "inscrutable Chinks" and an English actor performs in "yellowface". Some Fawlty Towers episodes will run with warnings of offensive language. The Doctor Who serial from 1977 has a warning attached indicating "Contains stereotypes that some may find offensive."[84][85]

In June, following the widespread George Floyd protests, shows like Little Britain were removed from BritBox, along with others, due to the use of Blackface in the programme.[86]

The sale of rights to BBC and Channel 5 content has caused some reporters to be wary of BritBox's viability as a platform for new content, due to deals with larger SVODs to exclusively stream newer BBC content and non-exclusive deals with Sky and Now TV to access Channel 5 box sets.[87] However, many BBC Studios' deals have given licences to some of its content to many other SVODs on a non-exclusive basis. With newer or co-produced series more likely to be exclusive to certain SVODs, shown with the new 2020 original commissions being BritBox UK exclusive. Whereas Sky already has existing deals with not only Channel 5, but Channel 4 and the BBC to have certain box sets on their Sky and Now TV platforms in the UK.[88]

All current and future series of the 2005 revival of Doctor Who will be exclusive to stream on HBO Max in the US, following a deal between the two, on 1 August 2019.[87] Other content from BBC Studios such as The Honourable Woman, Luther, Top Gear, and the British version of The Office would be available on HBO Max on a non-exclusive basis, meaning they would potentially be also available on BritBox.[89]

On 1 April 2019, a 10-year content partnership was agreed between BBC Studios and Discovery, which will see Discovery become the exclusive global home of the BBC's landmark natural history programmes including the Planet Earth, Blue Planet and Life franchises for SVOD. The Dynasties series, hosted by Sir David Attenborough, is included in the deal, as are future BBC-commissioned landmark series. This deal applies Worldwide except the UK, Ireland and Greater China, meaning such series may be unavailable on BritBox platforms outside the United Kingdom. Upcoming co-produced content between Discovery and BBC Studios would be exclusive to Discovery's upcoming streaming platform outside the UK.[90][91]

The Discovery deal includes around 500 hours of non-exclusive content, which will still be available on other streaming services. A BBC Studios spokesperson told TBI that the relationship with Discovery is "very significant and important but it is not 100% exclusive on all titles in all regions and is therefore able to co-exist alongside regional deals of this type", following BBC Studios' deal to provide factual content to Greek telco OTE's pay-TV service Cosmote TV.[92]

With limitations to its budget and original programming when compared to other SVODs, BritBox faces strong competition in the increasingly crowded streaming market. Critics warn that BritBox needs to greatly increase its financial firepower and original programming to compete in especially the UK market, against rivals, Netflix, Prime Video and Disney+, following reports more Brits would subscribe to Disney+ over BritBox.[93] Critics say that BritBox is no rival, and cannot rival Netflix without substantial resources. BritBox also faces direct competition with Acorn TV, an American streaming service which provides many British television programmes, among others, with the service recently launching in the UK.

The list of available programmes differs between the Canadian, UK and US platforms.[94] For example, BritBox carries Coronation Street in the US but not in Canada, where the corresponding rights have long been held by CBC Television. Meanwhile, in the UK, TV shows, especially produced by independent production companies (like the BBC show Peaky Blinders) may appear on the UK BritBox, as the BBC or ITV have the domestic broadcasting rights, but may not be available on BritBox elsewhere, due to the independent production companies giving international rights to services like Netflix. This means that depending on whether the BBC and ITV own only the domestic rights, programmes on UK BritBox may not also be available on its American and Canadian platforms.[52] Alternatively, shows like Living the Dream may not appear on the UK BritBox, as it is broadcast by Sky and available on Sky's streaming service Now TV in the UK, but currently appears on the US BritBox.[95]

BBC and ITV content currently on other streaming services are likely to be exclusive to BritBox once the other SVOD licences expire, therefore potentially leading to harmony in programming between the platforms.[53] Any original content produced for all BritBox platforms is set to be exclusively on BritBox, however, some UK commissioned content may be UK exclusive.

Whether content co-produced between British broadcasters and larger SVODs, like Netflix and Prime Video, will be on any BritBox platforms is unclear,[70] these include shows like Bodyguard in which a BritBox Spokesperson said "can't come back home", and who added that "going forward, we [BritBox] won't licence things to Netflix and Amazon in the first place because we now have a home, a streaming service in the UK",[71] they also added that in response to not licensing to other SVODs, since its focus is on UK-produced series, the platform would not compete to acquire the rights to US or international shows.[96]

Recently aired or current shows made for the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 terrestrially in the United Kingdom, would appear on their VOD services, BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, My5 and All 4 respectively before BritBox. These shows would then move to BritBox at a later date, then be exclusive to BritBox once the shows have expired on the terrestrial VOD,[72] which is 30 days for ITV Hub and My5, 31 days for All 4 and 12 months for BBC iPlayer.[97]

New content not made exclusively for BritBox, but for the BBC for example, may not be available on BritBox platforms outside the UK, due to deals struck with other SVODs such as HBO Max and Discovery.[98]

BritBox's launch in the United States was announced in December 2016, it launched on 7 March 2017.[8]

Among the shows offered upon BritBox's initial launch, were the US premieres of New Blood and Tutankhamun. In addition, other episodes of new programmes available on the service include:

On 1 August 2019, HBO Max announced its acquisition of library rights to several BBC Studios series, including the first 11 seasons of the 2005 Doctor Who revival, as well as future seasons 12–14. The Honourable Woman, Luther, Top Gear, and the original British series The Office are also some other shows in the acquisition. HBO Max will also stream future seasons of Doctor Who after their initial run on BBC America. Newer Doctor Who would be exclusive to HBO Max, with the other shows in the deal sold on a non-exclusive basis.[87][89]

BritBox Canada-inspired Stacked Logo

BritBox launched in Canada on 14 February 2018,[9] on launch the service included a free 7-day trial and in which content can be streamed on the web, on an iOS app, Apple TV, Android, Samsung TVs, Chromecast and Roku. It comes with a free 7-day introductory trial, and priced at CAD 8.99 per month on launch.[10] Users who signed up for the service in the U.S. will be able to access their subscription in Canada.

The catalogue of content on the Canadian platform is similar to the American platform, but minor differences do exist, for example, Coronation Street isn't on Canadian BritBox, due to CBC Television holding the Canadian broadcasting rights.

Coloured variation of BritBox logo

BritBox launched in the UK on 7 November 2019.[52][100] Unlike other platforms, the UK platform would include content from the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 (which includes Film4 Productions), Channel 5 and Comedy Central UK.

BritBox UK signed a partnership deal with Channel 4 in 2019, allowing the service to host over a thousand hours of content from All 4 over the next three years. New series will continue to appear on BritBox one month after transmission of the last episode on Channel 4's channels.

Complete box-sets launching in April 2020 include:

An exclusive Film4 curated service featuring iconic British films was announced to follow the launch of Channel 4 content on BritBox later in 2020.[101] On 21 August, BritBox UK confirmed a collection of 25 titles, primarily drawn from the Film4 library, including: Trainspotting, Beast, Charlotte Gray and The Hatton Garden Job which will be available on the service from 17 September 2020. A further 25 titles will be added before the end of 2020.[74]

On 5 March 2020, the BBC and ITV announced that BritBox is to launch in Australia in late 2020.[4] The service finally launched in Australia on 23 November 2020.[102]

BritBox is only available to residents of Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. UK residents can watch BritBox when temporarily outside the UK but within the EU.[103] Australian, Canadian, and US residents can use BritBox in Australia, Canada, and the US (with differences in show availability due to rights restrictions) but it cannot be used outside of North America and Australia (including the UK version of BritBox while in the UK).[104]

When accessing BritBox not via a web browser