BBC Worldwide has agreed a digital licensing agreement with US movie-streaming giant Netflix that will allow members to stream shows such as Doctor Who, Torchwood and Spooks when it launches in the UK and Ireland next year.
Shows will be available to watch instantly over the internet on connected TVs, tablets, games consoles, PCs and smartphones.
BBC Worldwide content is already available on Netflix in North and Latin America.
Steve Macallister, BBC Worldwide’s president and MD of sales and distribution, said, “UK audiences have really grasped the experience that online viewing can bring and our programming has proven to be particularly popular with this digital audience.”
Ted Sarandos, Netflix chief content officer, added, “BBC shows are a big favourite of our over 20m streaming members in the US, Canada and Latin America. Members love watching back-to-back episodes of BBC series where and when they want, at the click of a button.”
Other shows, including Little Britain, Fawlty Towers, Miss Marple and Inspector Lynley, will be available to members when Netflix launches in the UK and Ireland.
Netflix is also reportedly in talks with ITV over a potential distribution deal for archive video content (nma.co.uk 8 November 2011).
It has already signed an exclusive content deal with UK film and TV studio Lionsgate to stream films to UK and Ireland subscribers when it launches here next year.
Netflix, which offers a similar streaming TV and movie rental service to Amazon-owned LoveFilm, announced it would launch in the UK in 2012 in October.
