UPDATED | The owner of the GREAT! and POP channels is celebrating three years since its inception with two new free channels. It follows strong growth across its existing channels.
- GREAT! Mystery and POP Up channels to launch exclusively on free streaming platforms.
- GREAT! Mystery to debut movies before they’re shown on existing Freeview channels.
Three years after Narrative Entertainment UK was created, taking over the former Sony entertainment, film and children’s channels, the company is celebrating growing audience figures and the creation of two free, ad-supported streaming TV channels coming soon.
It follows the launch of reality channel GREAT! Real in March and the expansion of its Irish service in April.
GREAT! Mystery will be the new ‘Home of the Whodunnit’.
Importantly, the channel will screen movie premieres to streaming audiences before they appear on the existing GREAT! movies linear channels that are on Freeview, Sky and Virgin Media.
For children, POP Up will showcase takeovers of popular children’s shows, giving them back-to-back episodes of their favourite shows.
POP Up’s launch follows the migration of sister channel Tiny POP from traditional to streaming platforms back in March.
The streaming-only status of POP Up reflects the shift towards streaming among younger audiences.
Both FAST channels will begin rolling out across the following streaming platforms during June:
- Samsung TV Plus
- LG Channels
- Netgem
- Plex
Three years of expansion
Narrative Capital took over the former Sony Movies channels, plus children’s channels POP, Tiny POP and POP Max on 14th May 2021. Out the takeover, Narrative Entertainment UK was born, becoming the operator of the largest independent portfolio of free-to-air services. It inherited a service that offered no streaming or catch-up facility. A number of its Freeview channels only had limited UK coverage.
Grouping the entertainment channels under the GREAT! brand, that situation has rapidly changed. Its core movie channels now enjoy wider Freeview coverage and its online services continue to launch in more places.
In the past months, Narrative has already launched a range of new services, focusing particularly on expanding its availability on streaming services and apps, plus boosting its channels on the UK’s biggest TV platforms, Freeview and Sky. That’s come at the expense of smaller platforms, such as Freesat, which lost the GREAT! channels and POP in February.
That strategy appears to have paid off. It’s reported a further increase in its share of commercial impacts (SOCI) versus other broadcasters. In the year to date, the GREAT! Network of channels, which includes GREAT! tv, GREAT! movies and GREAT! romance among others, has seen its SOCI increase by 10%.
Paul Dunthorne, Managing Director, said
“After a record breaking 2023, Narrative Entertainment UK continues to punch far above its weight, outperforming the market in audience growth and commercial impacts. We are unapologetically focused on our heartland audiences; we know who they are and understand what they enjoy. This, matched with our independence and expertise, gives us the agility and commercial mindset to learn fast, adapt and launch at scale, bringing much loved TV to our audiences, wherever they are – always for free”.
Meanwhile, Narrative will also launch its first streaming channel in the USA and Canada – GREAT! Comedy – to be available via Plex.
By: Marc Thornham | Images courtesy of Narrative Entertainment | Article updated with streaming platforms on 31/05/2024.