UKTV introduces Dave

Young men who like quizshows and cult comedies are the target audience for UKTV’s new channel Dave, which will begin broadcasting on all digital TV platforms next month, a rebrand for the UKTV G2 network.

Aimed at men aged 16-34, Dave, which is one of nine channels that form the UKTV pay-TV network, is a comedy and factual entertainment channel that is designed to have a unique brand in the multi-channel environment, said the UK cabsat company. It is based on the idea that ‘everybody knows somebody called Dave.’

Dave’s channel head Steven North explained: “UKTV G2 is an incredibly successful channel with 10 million viewers in pay homes each month, but with relatively low brand awareness. Changing the channel name to Dave enables us to create a strong and noisy personality for the channel that immediately aligns us with our core 16-34 male audience.”

Julia Jordan, UKTV’s executive director business and operations, went on to say that the younger male audience is of “very high value commercially” but is currently under-served in Freeview homes, where Dave will soon air, bringing its launch footprint to 20 million homes.

From 15 October 2007, Dave will broadcast from 07.00-03.00 on Freeview (ousting UKTV Bright Ideas), Sky channel 111 and Virgin TV channel 125. Dave will be airing shows like QI, Top Gear, Never Mind the Buzzcocks and The Catherine Tate Show. UKTV already has its history channel on Freeview.