BritBox Streaming Service Set To Expand Into 25 Countries
Created by ITV plc and the BBC, popular digital video subscription service Britbox is on the verge of finalizing plans that involve rolling the service out to 25 countries around the world, with the footprints spreading out across the Middle East, Europe, Asia, Africa, and South America. This will heavily rely on the service's success in America and Canada.
In both America and Canada, BritBox has over a staggering one million subscribers. Slated to be made available in Australia later this year, the platform was launched in the U.K. in Nov., but it remains to be seen what other countries BritBox will target for its expansion.
BritBox is teeming with U.K. programmings such as EastEnders, Coronation Street, Shetland, and Vera. In addition to that, the service has co-produced The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco, There She Goes, The Mallorca Files, and The Bay.
The service took the wraps off a slew of original commissions including Magpie Murders (Eleventh Hour Films), Crime (Buccaneer Media), The Beast Must Die (New Regency Television and Scott Free), and A Spy Among Friends (Sony and ITV Studios), according to Variety. CEO of BBC Studios and incoming BBC director-general Tim Davie said the service has quickly paved its way into viewers' hearts.
He went on to explain that the studio realizes that there is a further appetite among worldwide audiences, who enjoy watching good British content. Expressing his excitement about the service's impending launch in Australia, Davie said they are still checking out new markets to launch the service.
ITV's chief executive Carolyn McCall said the international expansion will propel BritBox straight to the global premium brand category in this fast-growing sector. McCall attributed the services rapid growth in the U.K. to its ability to make the best and biggest collection of British content available to its subscribers.
Speaking about the expansion, she noted that streaming is a rapidly growing service across the globe, and BritBox will cash in on this popularity through the expansion, giving the company's distinctive streaming business a mammoth international scope. BritBox is a joint venture between ITV, and BBC commercial arm BBC Studios.
BritBox also revealed what is slated to come to the streamer next month. Wild Bill Season 1 will be released on Aug. 4, Moving On Seasons 1-9 on Aug. 7, QI Season “R” on Aug. 14, There She Goes Season 2 on Aug. 18, Murder, Mystery and My Family Season 3 on Aug. 21, and Agatha Christie’s Marple Seasons 1-5 on Aug. 25.