11 MAR 2022

Britbox UK managing director Will Harrison steps down

Harrison will not be replaced, with the news coming a week after major shareholder ITV said it will be folding BritBox into forthcoming AVoD/SVoD ITVX, and BritBox UK will fall within the remit of Rufus Radcliffe, ITV’s Managing Director of Streaming.

11 MAR 2022
null

Will Harrison

Share
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Linkedin
  • Whatsapp

BritBox UK has confirmed that its Managing Director, Will Harrison, will step down from his role and leave the company. Harrison is to depart, having led the streamer’s UK operation since its 2019 launch, as ITV gears up to roll out ITVX. Harrison will not be replaced, with the news coming a week after major shareholder ITV said it will be folding BritBox into forthcoming AVoD/SVoD ITVX. The BBC has sold its minority BritBox UK share to ITV, but BBC Studios and ITV still operate BritBox International in North America and other territories.

Once subsumed by ITVX, BritBox UK will fall within the remit of Rufus Radcliffe, ITV’s Managing Director of Streaming. Harrison joined BritBox UK in 2019, shortly after the subscription streaming service launched, to oversee commercial and strategy shortly after 2019 launch, and the streamer has since accrued 733,000 subscribers, commissioning a wealth of originals including the "Spitting Image" reboot, "Irvine Welsh’s Crime" and "The Beast Must Die." Harrison had previously served as Managing Director of The Ingenious Group and had also held senior roles at Warner Bros. Entertainment, HBO Europe, and Vicat Media. “I’m grateful to the entire BritBox team for all they have achieved and to ITV and BBC for entrusting their joint venture to my leadership,” Harrison said in a statement.

Rufus Radcliffe, ITV managing director of streaming, added: “Will has played an outstanding role building up BritBox’s strong UK subscriber base. As the service moves into the next phase of its evolution as part of ITVX, Will has chosen to explore new opportunities, and we wish him every success in the future.”