A taste of Disney+ is coming to ITVX in the UK, with the broadcaster-owned AVOD service premiering tentpole Disney+ originals like ‘Andor’, ‘Only Murders in the Building’ and ‘The Bear’ on 16th July. Show Tracker reveals that this agreement did not appear out of nowhere, but has been seeded by a long term engagement between ITVX and Disney.
Since February 2024, ITVX has become a destination for Disney titles following their first window on Disney+, with ITV acquiring AVOD rights co-exclusive with Disney+ who keep the series on the service at the same time. With the exception of the titles announced as part of Disney and ITV’s new deal, acquired series have typically appeared on ITVX within two years of their original debut on Disney+.
Warner Bros. Discovery is another US studio also selling shows to ITVX in the second window, managing to sell a number of titles to the platform including ‘Black Lightning’, ‘Doom Patrol’, ‘Legacies’ and ‘Pennyworth’, all titles that they might find themselves sharing with HBO Max when it launches in the UK.
ITVX also looks past these two major suppliers for second windows, acquiring some second windows from UK distributors to supplement their British drama slate (‘This is Going to Hurt’, ‘Rellik’, ‘The Name of the Rose’.)
The majority of US acquisitions by ITVX originally debuted on SVOD services in the first window in the UK. In addition to the Disney+ titles from Disney, ITVX has acquired three titles following a Paramount+ debut. While the Paramount distributed ‘Rabbit Hole’ remains on Paramount+ at the same time, ‘Minx’ (Lionsgate) and ‘The Killing Kind’ (Sony) have departed Paramount+ and are now exclusive to ITVX. One of the most notable recent premieres outside of the Disney slate is the Apple TV+ Original ‘Suspicion’ in June. Of all Global SVOD services, Apple TV+ has historically been the most hesitant in allowing the licensing of its original content to third-parties in the second window.
The deal between Disney and ITVX brings more high-profile content to the AVOD platform, strengthening ITVX’s content offer. Titles are being selected carefully to drive awareness of new series coming to Disney+ and support their own platform objectives.
Meanwhile, the selection of ITV Studios content that Disney+ is taking for their service appearing on Disney+ could raise awareness of the free offering available on ITVX, while also enhancing Disney+’s UK content portfolio even further beyond its own UK originals such as ‘Extraordinary’ and ‘Renegade Nell’.
Many broadcasters are accelerating their digital-first approach at a breathtaking pace now. BVOD platforms are looking to capitalise on their reach and increase viewing, whilst the willingness of SVOD services to find new synergies - such as how Netflix has done so with TF1 in France - is driving more innovative approaches in global markets to content windows.
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