So it came to light last week that BBC and ITV have teamed up together to set up a streaming service much like Netflix. Here’s why I think it’s a bit of a naff idea…

So BritBox, what is it? BritBox will be a streaming service where the BBC and ITV will put old, loved TV shows for people to watch and enjoy for a fee of £5.99 – a part they love to push into the world as ‘We’re cheaper than Netflix look at us! Look at us!’

This part I do not disagree with, for months I have wanted a way to rewatch Only Fools and Horses because it was a great show I watched as a child and I’d love to watch it more now as an adult and fully understand all the humour.

But, the issue I have is this, and this is taken directly from the BBC article:

“The new shows to be made specifically for the new platform will be exclusive to BritBox” source.

Now my issue with this is, as a resident of England I ‘have’ to own a TV license. Currently the TV license stands at £154.50 a year which, really, is a large sum of money for any household. That £154 could be spent on better things, I mean, it could literally get you a nice holiday.

And my question about this is, if the new shows on the platform are exclusive to BritBox, what do the TV licensed people get? Of course we will also get new shows but will these be subpar to the ones shown on BritBox? Surely, because of the monthly fee, the BBC and ITV producers will put more of their time and effort into shows they’re showing on the subscription service, because if they don’t people won’t stay subscribed, rather than their ‘normal’ shows anyone could watch.

Some of the best TV has come from BBC dramas in the last few years, so will they all be gone? Will I not be able to watch top-notch television anymore just because I won’t pay an extra £5.99 a month (£70+ pounds a year) on top of the already high £154.50 fee?

I understand things like Netflix wanting to make a streaming service because they don’t already have a platform to show their films and TV shows and these are programmes we could not find anywhere else. But to do it on the BBC, a place where we already pay so much, and have an outlet to watch these shows on, I do not understand.

In my opinion I am not happy with the idea of Britbox as I want to be able to watch the new TV shows on my TV (or iPlayer) with the money I already give them through my TV license and not pay more on top just to not miss out.

With the older stuff I get, it’s nice to have a vault, but the new stuff? This doesn’t sit right with me at all.

What do you think?

Until next time.

Published by shonaharding

Media graduate with a passion for reviewing film and TV. View all posts by shonaharding