UKTV launches first non-linear brand: UKTV Play

23 June 2014 UKTV announces direct-to-viewer digital launch

UKTV Play to feature advance previews of original commissions and acquisitions

Popular programming such as Crackanory, Dave Gorman's Modern Life Is Goodish, Storage Hunters UK, Most Haunted and Ancient Black Ops all available

Service will launch on PC, iOS and YouView

British media company, UKTV, will launch a new digital-only service this summer designed to be highly accessible and intuitive.

UKTV Play will be as easy as switching on your TV, said CEO, Darren Childs. We will curate content by topics and events, so UKTV Play will take away the difficulty that some viewers find with video on demand: choosing what it is they want to watch.

Content will be compiled in familiar and intuitive collections, such as by topic and real-life events, as well as featuring dynamic staff picks', box sets and advance previews of new programmes.

UKTV Play will soft launch on iOS this summer with PC and YouView following by the end of the year meaning viewers can soon enjoy their favourite shows such as Storage Hunters, Crackanory, Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled, Dara O Briain: School of Hard Sums, Inquisition, Raiders of the Lost Art, Crime Stories, Rescue Code One, Most Haunted and Ghost Adventures, along with a selection of fantastic BBC programmes.

The digital-only service will include box sets so viewers can enjoy hit series such as Lizard Lick Towing, 24 Hours to Go Broke, Black Ops and Museum Secrets, back to back.

The network's distinctive channel brands - such as Dave and Really - will also feature on UKTV Play; ensuring viewers can find their favourite shows as easily as if holding a remote control.

Dan Fahy, UKTV's Director of Commercial & Business Development, will work alongside General Manager for VOD, Emma Boston, on the roll out of UKTV Play and Head of VOD, Kim Morris, will oversee editorial content. Ben Hine, Director of Operations and Technology, and his team are responsible for building the service.

Fahy added,

We've launched UKTV Play because data shows our viewers will find more programming and engage with our channels more regularly if they have a single destination for on-demand viewing. UKTV Play has been created specifically to cater for our viewers' needs. It is an exciting new destination where they can find and watch programming from our different channels in a very easy and convenient way.

UKTV Play features easy to use functionality including swipe channel selection, stop-and-resume viewing, predictive search, alphabetical browser and parental controls.

The news of UKTV's latest brand launch comes at a time when the media company is enjoying record growth. It is currently the fastest growing commercial broadcaster in Britain.

The network reaches over 42 million viewers a month and has a raft of exciting new content in the pipeline that viewers will be able to enjoy on its linear channels and via UKTV Play, including brand new Storage Hunters UK and returning series' Crackanory, Ross Noble Freewheeling and Dave Gorman Modern Life is Goodish.

END For more information contact:

Justine Bower, Group Publicity Manager, UKTV

Zoe Clapp, Communications Director, UKTV

About UKTV corporate.uktv.co.uk / press.uktv.co.uk / @uktv_press

UKTV is the multi-award winning media company that reaches over 42 million viewers per month.

UKTVs eleven imaginative brands - Watch, Dave, Gold, Alibi, Eden, Yesterday, Drama, Really, Home, Good Food and UKTV Play - include the most watched non-PSB channel, the most watched channel in the Factual genre and the most watched channels in the Lifestyle genre (Pay and Free). The company's most recent financial results showed a record-breaking year-end revenue of £262m, and operating profit at £71m.

UKTV has a truly innovative model, curating brand-defining commissions, high-profile acquisitions and the very best of BBC and Channel 4 content, and embracing technology to deliver inspired channels to audiences through Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media, BT TV, TalkTalk, YouView, iOS and PC. The network distributes its highly valued programmes to 200 territories around the world and supplies Sky with more hours of HD content than anyone else.

Now celebrating its 21st year at the forefront of digital television, UKTV - an independent commercial joint venture between BBC Worldwide and Scripps Networks Interactive, Inc. (SNI) - is proud to be the only British broadcaster to be recognised by Best Companies.

LINK:	http://corporate.uktv.co.uk/news/article/uktv-launches-first-non-linea...
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