Britbox eyes international expansion

North American SVoD service BritBox will explore further original commissions and new territories to launch into, according to joint venture partner ITV.

Soumya Sriraman

The UK commercial broadcaster unveiled BritBox with BBC Worldwide (BBCWW) in the US in December 2016, with AMC Networks also investing in the service with a non-voting minority interest.

It offers 4,600 hours of programming and has committed to a 50% increase in original and acquired programming investment for the coming year. Scripted series such as Five
by Five, produced by and starring Luther star Idris Elba, Broken, and Mum are all available along with UK reality and entertainment fare including the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing and quiz show QI.

The service was launched in Canada in February and now ITV has said it is looking to roll out the service into other territories over the coming year.

In its 2017 preliminary results, ITV said it was “well positioned to take advantage of the opportunities that arise from the changes we are seeing in digital media and consumer behaviour.”

The broadcaster said it would “explore opportunities for BritBox on other platforms, include original commissions, and look to roll it out further internationally.” It added that the service has over 250,000 subscribers to date.

BritBox unveiled its first original drama, The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco, produced by ITV-backed World Productions and Canuck firm Omnifilm, earlier this year.

BBCWW and ITV share an equal majority stake in the venture, which is headed by former BBCWW exec Soumya Sriraman.

The news came as ITV unveiled its preliminary results for 2017, which showed ad revenues down by 5% in the year to December. Production operation ITV Studios fared better with revenues up 13% to £1.58bn (US$2.20bn) but overall profits were down by 6% to £800m.

However, the broadcaster said it would be increasing its full-year dividend by 8%.

Carolyn McCall, ITV’s recently appointed CEO, admitted that the broadcaster had been operating in a “challenging environment” caused by an uncertain economic outlook.

“We are very focused on our strategic refresh,” she said. “This will enable us to define a clear strategy and priorities that will highlight the opportunities and address the challenges that we face in an increasingly competitive media landscape. This project is well underway.

“We have had a great start to 2018. On-screen we have grown our viewing share and volume and online we have continued to deliver double digit growth in viewing.

“ITV Studios is seeing increasing demand for its formats and dramas, particularly in the UK and US, and we have over 60% of this year’s expected revenue already booked.”