All seven shareholders in YouView, including the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, have agreed to continue funding the connected TV platform for a further 5 years.
The group – which also includes BT, TalkTalk, Channel 5 and Arqiva – will remain equal shareholders “committed to promoting the future of connected free-to-air TV and enabling an upgrade path to pay services.”
Today’s news secures shareholder funding until 2019. Under its cost-recovery business model YouView also receives contributions from providers who offer on-demand content through the service.
The platform offers users more than 70 free-to-air TV and radio channels and on-demand video players including iPlayer and Sky Store plus the option to add up to 112 internet delivered TV channels through a subscription with BT and TalkTalk.
Further content providers are expected to be added later this year and the service is promising updates to its remote record app and further feature enhancements.
CEO Richard Halton said: “We are delighted that all seven shareholders have committed to the future of YouView with a 5 year term.
“We have achieved a significant milestone with well over 1 million homes regularly using the service and high levels of usage and satisfaction as key indicators of success for the future.
“The next phase for YouView involves ambitious developments across a range of devices and we’re looking forward to achieving our long term target of 10 million connected UK homes.”
There had been much speculation about the platform’s future after the Guardian newspaper last month claimed broadcasters, including the BBC, were quitting the joint venture to set-up a new connected service under the Freeview brand.
The claims had been robustly denied both by the BBC and YouView who said the partners were pleased with the platform’s performance and that the corporation remained committed to it.
A YouView spokesperson declined to confirm the total level of funding or the split between shareholders, commenting: “Total investment and individual contributions are commercially sensitive and YouView doesn’t share this information.”
