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BritBox surpasses 500,000 subs

January 18, 2019

BritBox, the US SVoD service from BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC, and ITV, the UK’s biggest commercial broadcaster, has surpassed 500,000 subscribers, doubling year-on-year, as it ends its 22nd month in the US and 11th month in Canada.

The service, home to a library collection of British streaming content, was considered the fastest growing subscription on-demand streaming service in the US from Q4 2017 through to Q3 2018.

Soumya Sriraman, President, BritBox said: “We knew that our special sauce of combining our ‘Now’ feature of near live television, with the best British TV programming would make this a must-have service. British content is as popular as ever, and we are doubling down by making amazing series accessible while continuing to build our ever-growing community around desirable content.”

Ann Sarnoff, President, BBC Studios – Americas and BritBox Board Chair, said: “We are very proud that BritBox has reached this milestone so quickly. Our fantastic team has worked brilliantly to strike a chord with British ‘telly’ fans by super-serving them all things British. Our continued commitment to content investment will mean even more great programming to engage the fans going forward.”

Martin Goswami, ITV Director of Pay and Distribution, added: “The fantastic growth of BritBox is a testament to the work of the team involved since its launch, the quality of programmes the BBC and ITV offer through the service, and the appetite for the best British TV amongst viewers in the US and Canada. We’re at a really exciting point for BritBox and look forward to further developments in the year ahead.”

Since BritBox’s U.S. launch on March 7, 2017, the service has exclusively premiered current seasons of Vera, starring Academy Award, Golden Globe, and Emmy-nominated actress Brenda Blethyn (Pride and Prejudice), Maigret, starring BAFTA winner Rowan Atkinson (Johnny English), Hold the Sunset, starring Academy Award and Emmy Award nominee John Cleese (Fawlty Towers), and Bliss starring Independent Spirit Award winner Heather Graham. It also premiered its first original commission, Bletchley Circle: San Francisco, in July of 2018, reviving the franchise to a captivated audience.

BritBox continues to add British reality and entertainment staples including QI and Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, seasonal comedies for the holidays such as Click & Collect and Upstart Crow, and factual lifestyle strands Springwatch and Gardeners’ World.

Many of BritBox’s hit series are available within hours of their UK broadcast with the service’s “Now” feature including the UK’s highest-rated soaps – EastEnders, Coronation Street, Emmerdale, Casualty, and Holby City – and dramas –  Silent Witness, Little Boy Blue, Three Girls, and Cold Feet.

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