BritBox Australia has unveiled a significant expansion of its streaming service, introducing three new linear channels and an expanded content catalogue nearly five years after its local launch.
The subscription platform will increase monthly fees from A$9.99 to A$13.99, with annual subscriptions rising to A$139.99 from 31 July 2025.
The enhanced service promises hundreds of hours of additional British content, including exclusive series Agatha Christie’s Towards Zero, Outrageous, Fear and Death Valley.
New seasons of popular returning series Shetland and The Bay will join established favourites such as Call the Midwife, Death in Paradise and Silent Witness.
I am someone who regularly watches Britbox (looking forward to binge watching the new season of Shetland this weekend).
I think this 40% price rise is not justified unless the BBC adds their new best TV shows to Britbox Australia as exclusive first runs before reselling them to ABC, SBS, Foxtel, 9, 7, 10 etc and also adds more of their back catalouge of old classic TV shows to Britbox as well.
“This exciting new chapter for BritBox Australia features an expanded slate of exclusive UK shows and genre collections advancing our objective to be the best curators of British television, offering our customers more thoughtfully organised collections,” commented Moira Hogan, Executive Vice President of International Markets and General Manager of BritBox Australia.
Three New Linear Channels Launch
BBC First The premium drama destination featuring high-quality crime thrillers and period dramas, including Beyond Paradise, The Bay, and Call the Midwife.
BBC Entertain A general entertainment channel mixing comedy, drama and lifestyle content with British comedies like Richard Osman’s House of Games and quiz shows including QI and Would I Lie To You?
BBC Select The documentary hub showcasing nature, science and true crime content from presenters including David Attenborough, Brian Cox and Michael Mosley.
The new channels will stream at 1080p adaptive streaming quality and complement the existing on-demand catalogue rather than replace it. This marks a return of sorts for BBC First, which previously operated as a linear channel on Foxtel and Fetch TV before closing in July 2024.
“It reflects entirely the on-demand catalogue. The linear streams are there to be a real complement to that on-demand viewing experience,” remarked Hogan. “We’re not moving away from on-demand, we’re a streaming service. Adding linear helps customers find something to instantly watch.”
Does Extra Content, Linear Channels and Some 4K Justify Price Increase?
Unlike Disney and Warner Bros Discovery, which have made their streaming platforms the primary destination for first-window content, the BBC maintains a more flexible distribution approach in Australia.
While BritBox secures exclusive first-run rights for series including Call The Midwife, Silent Witness and Death in Paradise, other BBC content remains available through various local platforms.
Australian viewers can access BBC content beyond BritBox through multiple channels. The popular series Doctor Who streams on Disney+ due to co-funding arrangements, while Nine’s 9Now platform offers ad-supported BBC channels including BBC Comedy, BBC Earth, BBC Food, BBC Home & Garden, Top Gear UK, and Antiques Roadshow.
“We’re really pleased on BritBox to be the home of first run territory premiere series for Call The Midwife, Silent Witness, Death in Paradise, and we’ve expanded into a bunch of other shows as well,” noted Hogan. “But we’re pretty confident as part of the BBC there’s lots of content to go around, and there’s lots of partnerships that are still there for BBC content to reach.”
The platform has also focused on reducing the delay between UK transmission and Australian availability where possible. Recent examples include the Chelsea Flower Show and BAFTA TV Awards, alongside drama series arriving shortly after their UK debuts.
The subscription price increase brings additional benefits beyond new content and channels. Subscribers will gain access to more 4K UHD content, increased download limits, and improved viewing quality across the platform.
BritBox is offering new and returning subscribers a limited-time opportunity to secure an annual subscription at A$129.99 before 30 June 2025, saving A$10 on the new full-year rate. The new features begin rolling out from 3 June, with price changes affecting subscribers’ first bill after 31 July.
“We’ve done a lot of consumer research and what our customers have told us is they really want more of the latest series of shows they really love on BritBox,” explained Hogan. “It’s a really considered decision for us, the type of shows that we’re releasing and that we’re adding into the service to add extra value to customers.
