The streaming landscape just got even more crowded: BBC Studios and ITV’s SVOD platform BritBox officially launched in Australia today.
Among the exclusive titles for the British-content streamer are A Confession, Appropriate Adult, Vera, Endeavour, Prime Suspect, Shakespeare & Hathaway, Father Brown, Victoria, Lewis, Murder on the Blackpool Express, Your Home Made Perfect, and The Curse of Ishtar. Police procedural The Mallorca Files will be available from December.
Also on the platform is the reboot of All Creatures Great and Small, featuring Nicholas Ralph, Rachel Shenton and Callum Woodhouse, and the service’s first commission, a revival of ’80s sketch comedy Spitting Image, from original creator Roger Law.
The launch coincides with ‘Doctor Who Day’, with the service offering the entire collection of the show from 1963 – 2019, with all 13 Doctors. Other classics will include Mr Bean, Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Kingdom, The Vicar of Dibley, The Office, Top Gear, Luther, Absolutely Fabulous, Midsomer Murders and Blackadder.
Britbox’s launch in Australia follows that of the US, Canada and UK, with more territories expected to follow.
Here it will retail for $8.99 per month, or $89.99 for a 12 month subscription, with a seven-day free trial. That’s the same price as a Disney+ subscription, while Stan and Binge start at $10 per month, and Netflix at $10.99.
In August, a stock exchange filing revealed ITV intended to invest $17.7 million over the next three years to launch the service here, with BBC Studios to provide an equal amount of funding.
Britbox announced the appointment of Moira Hogan as country manager back in July, joining from Network 10. Rich Hill was also appointed head of launching marketing and PR.
Overall, the Britbox Australia team consists of eight full-time staffers, and is supported by the global teams in the United States and UK.
Hogan said: “Our aim is to be the place to discover hidden gems or find your new favourite series. We’ve delved into the rich catalogues of BBC Studios and ITV to deliver thousands of hours of classic and contemporary mystery, crime, drama and comedy titles for launch. This is just the start, with plenty more favourite British series, territory premieres, exclusives and originals to be released on BritBox each month.
“BritBox will also be the home to a variety of recently and previously broadcast series that viewers may have missed the first time around, now available for streaming on demand all in the one place.
“Australians have an affinity for British television and the launch of BritBox in Australia is a unique opportunity to tap into this passion and nostalgia. We look forward to firmly establishing ourselves with Australian streaming audiences.”