Are you ready for another streaming service? ITV, the UK television powerhouse, made a significant announcement about the impending debut of its fresh streaming service, ITVX, this morning. This appears to be a move taken to compete with Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, although ITVX will be a little bit different in that it will be a hybrid streaming service having both free ad-supported content and a second paid-for tier. This means that users who don’t mind ads may approach content at no cost, while those who want to get everything will need to pay — the paid tier will weed out the ads for all content as well as offer additional content from BritBox and other partners. Most notably – by making a move to the channel’s typical approach – ITV will pursue a ‘digital first’ strategy, publishing content on ITVX first and then broadcasting it on the regular broadcast channel up to nine months later. They’ll also adopt a more Netflix-like, binge-watch-friendly strategy, releasing full seasons of new drama, comedy, and reality shows in one fell swoop once the first episode premieres.
A Spy Among Friends, starring Damian Lewis and Guy Pearce; Nolly, a biographical series featuring Helena Bonham Carter as Crossroads star Noele Gordon; and Litvinenko, featuring David Tennant as the poisoned former spy; Lenny Henry’s six-part thriller The Little Birds. The service will take the place of ITV Hub and will therefore include all of the ITV boxsets and catch-up functionality currently available on that platform, in addition to offering much more content – and thanks to a deal with WarnerMedia International Television Distribution, ITVX will also air some US shows, consisting of All American and The Sex Lives Of College Girls.
ITV isn’t yet announcing the price of the subscription tier, but the service is expected to launch later this year.
