UKTV Split terms agreed

BBC Studios pays £173m to retain seven entertaiment brands including Dave and Gold

BBC Studios exec Marcus Arthur is to take the reins at a slimmer UKTV after the BBC’s commercial arm agreed to pay Discovery £173m to retain seven channels in the break-up of the joint venture.

BBCS confirmed today that it will operate UKTV’s entertainment channels, with Discovery taking ownership of lifestyle channels Good Food, Home and Really.

The sum includes a balancing payment of around £100m in relation to the acquisition of UKTV’s seven entertainment channels and £70m of debt currently financed by Discovery.

(Broadcast)

I though yesterday would have went. I can see good food and food network mergering.

It would probably end up as Food Network as I assume a royalty is paid to the BBC to use the Good Food name.

How does this work with the notion that the BBC shouldn’t be operating advertising funded channels within the UK (which, I understand, was the reason UKTV was created as a joint venture in the first place). Or is that just not a regulatory concern any more?

Incidentally I see the fruits of the BBC’s on demand tie up with Sky appear on Sky Box Sets this morning, quite a number of classic Britcoms (Only Fools, Blackadder, Red Dwarf, Ab Fab, Keeping Up Appearances, Fawlty Towers, and the Vicar of Dibley). In Ireland at least, these are getting UKTV rather than BBC branding.

This is all in preparation for Britbox surely. I expect the linear channels will fold into that.

The UKTV channels will be controlled/operated by BBC Studios

Hopefully decent idents like BBC First for example.

I don't think there have ever been been regulatory issues regarding 100% ownership. The only thing I'm aware of is that the channels were initially to be BBC branded but BBC Worldwide changed its mind due to the public perception of BBC branded channels carrying adverts.

I think the British public would get used to it but admittably I been watching Bbc world news for years, it was strange at first watching commercials on a Bbc branded channel.

For the benefit of anyone wondering if this is/was an April fools there's a non-subscription article about the takeover available at https://www.theguardian.com/media/2019/apr/01/bbc-take-control-uktv-deal-discovery.

(Edit to fixed link.)

It say 404..

Does this mean if the BBC wanted to launch a global iPlayer they can't have natural history or science programs on the platform for 10 years because of the exclusive rights? If so then the BBC have just shot their global future in the foot.


Also Really has new content on it surprized the BBC will let it go. I guess Quest red will merge into really so that discovery will have Quest branded and Really branded channels. I guess we could see Really, Really Home and Really Food. Wonder if discovery own the Good Food brand now or are they leasing the name.


Content is the future not channels. If I was the BBC I would have kept the rights, launched a streaming service and sold UKTV and put money into original programs. But that's just me.