BBC and ITV’s £5.99-a-month Netflix rival to launch this year

BRITBOX will be priced at £5.99 a month when it launches in the UK later this year, the BBC and ITV have said.

The streaming subscription service, a rival to the likes of Netflix, will launch some t i me b e t we e n O c to b e r a n d December.

ITV chief executive Carolyn McCall called the agreement to launch BritBox “a milestone moment”.

BBC director general Tony Hall said: “I am really excited about the new shows it will commission. With a remit to be daring and different, many future classics will be commissioned and live on BritBox for the future.”

Shows such as Love Island, Gavin & Stacey, Gentleman Jack, Victoria, Happy Valley, Les Misérables, The Office, Benidorm and Broadchurch will be available on BritBox. They will feature alongside new programmes made especially for the service. The first newly commissioned show will be available to viewers from 2020.

Dame Carolyn added: “Subscription video on demand is increasingly popular with consumers, who love being able to watch what theywant when theywant to watch it.

“They are also happy to pay for this ease of access to quality content, and so BritBox is tapping into this, and a new revenue stream for UK public service broadcasters.”

She said BritBox would contain “the largest collection of British boxsets ever — bringing the very best in past, present and future British programming and award-winning content to viewers all in one place”.

Lord Hall has dismissed complaints that viewers will have to pay twice for its shows with the launch of the service, having already been charged the £154.50 licence fee.