UKTV, part of the commercial arm of the BBC, have announced a name to be introduced during the summer of next year (2024). The name will also roll out to its streaming service and as a prefix to its channel line up.
UKTV operate 7 channels. Four are free-to-air and include Dave, Drame, W (formerly Watch), and Yesterday. The remaining three are susbcription only and include Alibi, Eden, and Gold. UKTV Play is the free-to-air catch up service, with all channels making use on an extensive library of archive BBC material, alongside commissioned programmes.
The new name will be ‘U’, which will also replace the UKTV Play name. The free-to-air channels will gain a ‘U’ prefix, and become U&Dave, U&Drama, U&W, and U&Yesterday. No changes have yet been announced for the subscription channels, with UKTV maintaining a clear distinction between its free-to-air and premium offerings.
The company says the channel name changes are designed to designed to unify the channels under a single umbrella, whilst maintaining unique content focus of each channel. However, the new single letter name for the parent streaming service is likely to make it harder to find on an internet search.