BBC Studios Buys ITV Stake in BritBox International for $322 Million
variety.comNaman Ramachandran BBC Studios has bought British broadcaster ITV‘s 50% stake in streamer BritBox International for £255 million ($322 million), the companies revealed on Friday.
The streamer was founded in 2017 as a joint venture between BBC Studios, which is the commercial arm of the British broadcaster, and ITV. “The transaction will provide net proceeds including loan repayments and accrued dividends and after tax of around £235 million,” the companies said. “The sale reflects ITV’s strategy of focusing on supercharging its U.K.
advertiser-funded streaming service, ITVX and growing its global Studios division,” ITV added. “The board intends to return the entire net sale proceeds to shareholders through a share buyback which it expects to launch imminently after the full-year results on March 7.” Under the terms of the agreement, ITV Studios will continue to receive an ongoing revenue stream from BritBox International similar to current levels for the use of ITV content under new extended licensing agreements.
BritBox U.K. will remain unaffected and will still feature BBC content as part of separate long-term agreements. In 2022, ITV had bought out the BBC’s share of BritBox U.K.
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