Britbox ; Everything You Always Wanted To Know About!

For an average Briton, the best mode to relish the elevenses is facing the morning slump with a cuppa. And! a biscuit to keep them going with their routine. And most of them love to focus on their gadgets while sipping that tea with freshly baked cookies.

There’s a saying in England, “There’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing,”. And nothing fits and calm you more than the hot cup of tea with milk while watching your favorite serial, movie or the series.

Yes, this is what Britons LOVE a lot.

Hmm, I know I am stalking the inner you right now, and there are fair chances that not many of us are even liking the same series & serials on Netflix since they don’t have the sophistication and the taste which every average English prefers.

But you don’t need to lose your heart, and you can cut that heart-wrenching right away since BritBox is coming to the UK later this year.

Oh My GOD!

Did this slip silently from your lips right now?

No prize for guessing, but I did the same and the reason is very obvious; the BBC and ITV are collaborating to launch a paid streaming service, which shall host a wider selection of box sets of British TV shows. And further to add the charisma, it shall be telecasting the original programs that cannot be watched anywhere else, like Netflix or Amazon Prime Video.

Isn’t is captivating?

Yes, it is…but ain’t you wondering that what exactly is BritBox, when is it coming, how much will it cost and why does the name seem familiar?

Too many questions and the answers lie in this blog post only…so without any further ado, let’s check out everything you ever wanted to know about BritBox.

First and the foremost, the question bubble that pops in your mind is What is BritBox? And please explain it in details…

BritBox is a joint venture of ITV and the BBC, it is the UK-based pay streaming service. Which would be proffering the access to archive British TV shows and would be a Pandora box of new programmes.

Albeit, BritBox already exists in the US & Canada and it has already made users going fanatically crazy about it, and that is proven further from the over half a million subscribers, and this number is not going to end anywhere soon.

“BritBox will be the home for the best of British creativity – celebrating the best of the past, the best of today and investing in new British originated content in the future.”- ITV CEO Carolyn McCall

“A new streaming service delivering the best home-grown content to the public who love it best. The service will have everything from old favourites to recent shows and brand new commissions.” As stated by BBC Director General Tony Hall.

The BBC and ITV have signed an agreement to bring BritBox to the UK.

What it would telecast?

Yes, this was the confusion even I had, but it is something very much different from the competitors since it would majorly host the “biggest collection of British content on any streaming service”. Further, the BritBox team would have the budget and funds to commission original shows from British production companies that will be exclusive to the service.

I know you are left gaping, but trust me there is much more to get experienced, just keep reading this post…

When BritBox is expected to launch?

BritBox will launch in Q4 of 2019, so that means Quarter of 2019 falling in the months of October-December.

How much will BritBox cost? How can I get it?

A very logical concern!

Well, to be précised the Britbox will cost £5.99 per month at launch. It is indeed a much affordable option than its rivals in the UK.

Will BritBox affect current services like BBC iPlayer?

As stated by the BBC and ITV, it shall not affect the way their catch-up services. BritBox will not have access to the current or recently aired shows the existing services have, and the new shows would be made available on the BritBox only after they have been made available on catch-up first.

This decision clearly states that British broadcasters will not be able to license their archive material to other streaming services like Netflix. Although, the full-fledged information can be sought once both ITV and the BBC finalise their formal legal agreement.

When will BBC and ITV shows move from iPlayer and ITV Hub to BritBox?

ITV shows will move to BritBox after the duration of 30 days on ITV Hub, while BBC shows will spend the time of 12 months on iPlayer before switching to the new streaming service.

Will there be additional license fee?

If you have paid the BBC license fee, then BritBox will not take any money from the licence fee.

What all devices will BritBox be available on?

However, there is formal confirmation on UK device list yet but, in the US, BritBox streaming is available on the following:

• Android devices
• Apple iPad
• Apple iPhone
• Apple TV (4th-gen)
• Google Chromecast
• PC and Mac (through a browser)
• Roku

Will BBC and ITV shows be removed from Netflix and other streaming services?

Yes, this shall happen. Viewers would be able to watch some of the iconic shows such as Gavin & Stacey, Victoria, Happy Valley, Broadchurch, Les Miserables, The Office and Benidorm, which will be on the service at launch or come onto the service shortly after when licences with other SVODs end,” according to a release from the BBC and ITV.

How much money are the BBC and ITV putting into BritBox?

ITV has promised to invest up to £65m in the joint venture over the next two years. Whereas the BBC has not made an investment. But! it would be the investment of “tens of millions” into original content.

Why is this happening now?

To be précised, UK broadcasters are being quite nervous about the market consumption power of Amazon and Netflix. And! with the growing demand of such streaming services, in the UK, there are more than 12 million subscribers.

Albeit, the demand of UK-produced content is high, with 43% of all online homes interested in subscribing to a new service which features British shows only.

What are the challenges for BritBox?

• BritBox will be facing established competitors Netflix & Amazon prime Video
• Netflix signed up 125 million subscribers globally over seven years, BritBox needs to maintain the same number.
• The absence of Channel 4 and Sky in this deal could be an issue.

Indeed, the accuracy of the information can only be judged when the BBC and ITV will provide a further update about BritBox. When a formal agreement is reached. But! on the other hand, we all can not deny the ever-expanding popularity scale of live-streaming apps on the global forefront.

The spectrum of technology utilized by the leading mobile app development companies in UK like Techugo has really carved a benchmark and opened a floodgate of opportunities for the TV channels to take a plunge into the live-streaming app development.

If you too are willing to secure a net-worth revenue for your business with the live streaming app. Then reaching Techugo would be your best choice.