ITV AND DISNEY+ ANNOUNCE NEW CONTENT SHARING PARTNERSHIP

The Walt Disney Company and ITV announce today a new first-of-its-kind initiative to carry each other’s streaming services, in the form of a promotional selection, billed as a ‘Taste of ITVX’ and a ‘Taste of Disney+’ respectively.

The exciting initiative brings together two of the UK’s most recognisable entertainment brands to expand viewer choice and celebrate the best of British and international storytelling, marking a further milestone in The Walt Disney Company and ITV’s long-standing relationship. 

Starting 16 July, a curated, and regularly refreshed selection of hit shows and movies from Disney+ and ITVX will be available to viewers on both platforms. The agreement showcases ITV and Disney’s world-class content to each other's complementary audiences, extending reach and allowing more viewers to discover Disney+ and ITVX.

Disney+ customers in the UK will be able to stream some of ITV’s most acclaimed scripted and unscripted content. This includes the multi-award-winning drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office, espionage thriller Spy Among Friends, selected series of the reality hit Love Island, popular drama favourites like Endeavour, Vera, and Karen Pirie.

At the same time, ITVX viewers will be introduced to a rotating rail of Disney+ shows and movies titled ‘A Taste of Disney+’, updated regularly to reflect the breadth of Disney’s global storytelling.

The selection in coming months includes critically acclaimed, award-winning titles - from the first seasons of FX’s “The Bear”, Lucasfilm’s “Andor” and “Only Murders in the Building”, to selected series of reality titles including “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” and “The Kardashians", plus family favourites including “Lilo and Stitch: The Series” and “Phineas and Ferb”. “A Taste of Disney+” will be available to all ITVX viewers at no cost, and ad free on ITVX Premium. 

This agreement builds on the strong, evolving relationship between Disney and ITV.  ITV is the free-to-air home for Disney+’s “Renegade Nell”, and the forthcoming “Under the Bridge”, whilst ITV Studios is the producer behind hit Disney+ shows including “Rivals” (Happy Prince), “Suspect: The Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes” (Etta Pictures in association with KDJ Productions), and the return of Britain’s original dating series “Blind Date" (So TV & Stellify Media).

Joe Earley, President, Direct-to-Consumer, Disney Entertainment commented:

“We are proud of this innovative collaboration with ITV, which will allow us to bring Disney+ customers some of the UK’s favorite and buzzworthy shows and encourage ITVX viewers to discover some of Disney+’s award-winning series and blockbuster films.” 

 Kevin Lygo, Managing Director of Media and Entertainment, ITV said:

“Disney are fantastic partners with a brilliant breadth of content. This mutually beneficial alliance allows us to show our complementary audiences a specially selected collection of titles, regularly updating, that gives a flavour of the range in our respective offerings. For us, this deal means even more great content for viewers on ITVX, and even more opportunity for viewers to find and enjoy our distinctive titles and services.”    

More details will be announced in due course.