The Walt Disney Company and ITV have announced a new streaming collaboration that will see each platform host a rotating selection of the other’s content, in what both broadcasters are hailing as a first-of-its-kind initiative.
Launching on 16 July, the deal will introduce ‘A Taste of ITVX’ on Disney+ and ‘A Taste of Disney+’ on ITVX, giving viewers free access to curated selections of shows and films from both services. The collections will be updated regularly and are designed to showcase the breadth of British and international storytelling on offer.
For Disney+ customers in the UK, the agreement means they will now be able to watch some of ITV’s most talked-about programming, including the multi-award-winning drama Mr Bates vs The Post Office, espionage thriller Spy Among Friends, selected series of Love Island, popular dramas such as Endeavour, Vera, and Karen Pirie, as well as entertainment titles including The 1% Club and Price of Perfection. The programming will be available to all Disney+ users at no additional cost.
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At the same time, ITVX viewers will gain access to a rotating selection of Disney+ content, including critically acclaimed and award-winning series such as FX’s The Bear, Lucasfilm’s Andor, and Only Murders in the Building. The offering will also include reality favourites like The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and The Kardashians, alongside family content such as Lilo and Stitch: The Series and Phineas and Ferb. On ITVX, Disney+ titles will be available to all users and ad-free for ITVX Premium subscribers.
The partnership marks a new chapter in Disney and ITV’s ongoing relationship. ITV is already the free-to-air home for Disney+ titles including Renegade Nell and the upcoming Under the Bridge, while ITV Studios has produced a number of shows for Disney+, including Rivals from Happy Prince, Suspect: The Shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes from Etta Pictures in association with KDJ Productions, and a reboot of Blind Date from So TV and Stellify Media.
Joe Earley, President of Direct-to-Consumer at Disney Entertainment, said: “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, ITV’s Managing Director of Media and Entertainment, added: “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.”
The initiative is being pitched as a way of broadening reach for both services, while making premium British and international content more accessible than ever for UK audiences.
