BBC First channel, home to first run premium British dramas, will be exiting the Foxtel / Binge platform at the end of July, along with BBC Earth, BBC News and CBeebies.
Only entertainment channel UKTV will remain with the Foxtel Group, while BBC Studios are yet to confirm their future plans, but hint at a BritBox boost.
A BBC Studios spokesperson told TV Tonight, “We have agreed a multi-year deal with Foxtel Group for BBC UKTV, ensuring audiences will continue to be entertained with fan favourites such as Midsomer Murders, Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale, 8 out of 10 Cats Does Countdown and Father Brown. BBC Earth, BBC First, BBC News and CBeebies will leave Foxtel and Binge from 31 July.
“BBC Studios has ambitious plans for its brands and content in Australia and our business is evolving. We are a diverse content business and Australia is a growth region for BBC Studios with a large appetite for our content.
“BritBox and BBC.com give us our own platforms for growth. As we recently announced, BBC News livestream will be available on BBC.com shortly, showcasing the potential of our new digital products.”
The loss of first-run BBC dramas to Foxtel / Binge will be significant, having enjoyed first run rights to such titles as Happy Valley, The Sixth Commandment, Call the Midwife, Death in Paradise and more since an exclusive deal forged in 2013.
A Foxtel spokesperson said, “We recognise the popularity of British content amongst Australian audiences and have secured a multi-year deal with BBC Studios for BBC UKTV, securing fan favourites such as Midsomer Murders, Coronation Street, EastEnders, Emmerdale, 8 out of 10 Cats Does Countdown and Father Brown. As part of this agreement, the channel will be made available in HD, as well as SD, for the first time.
“We regularly review the content mix across our platforms and work with our content partners to reduce content duplication and ensure we are providing our customers a selection of quality content across multiple genres based on their preferences. BBC Earth, BBC First, BBC News and CBeebies will leave Foxtel and Binge from 31 July.
“Audiences will still be able to access world-class British drama and entertainment through our partnerships with Sky Studios, ITV, NBC Universal, Warner Bros. Discovery and the ABC, while Sky News UK will continue to keep Australian audiences up to date with the latest from the region. We look forward to sharing more soon.”
Meanwhile Fetch TV viewers will be getting a new BBC Drama channel which will be home to library titles including Death in Paradise, Call The Midwife, Silent Witness, Sixth Commandment, Happy Valley and Unforgotten -but not first-run seasons.
Fetch TV has extended its contract to retain BBC UKTV, BBC Earth, CBeebies, BBC Kids and BBC Brit, alongside BBC News and Britbox.
“Our strong relationship with Fetch TV for our channel brands continues and we recently announced an expanded deal with Sky TV in New Zealand, which adds BBC First to the suite of channels. We will continue to work with a number of broadcasters and platforms and are in discussions to bring our content to audiences in new ways,” said BBC Studios.
Updated.