The Peacock streaming service is getting an early release launch in the UK this week, for Sky and Now customers: more details here.
Over the coming year, Warner Bros will be rolling out its HBO Max streaming service around the world, whilst Paramount is said to be following a similar approach with its Paramount+ offering. But this very week, Universal becomes the latest studio to bring its streaming service to the UK, with the news that Peacock is being added to Sky and Now TV packages at no extra fee.
The launch kicks in starting today, and it’s not a huge surprise that it’s heading Sky-wards first. Comcast owns 51% of NBCUniversal, and also bought a controlling interest in Sky back in 2018.
Peacock brings exclusive and library movies and TV shows, and in the US for instance, the horror hit Halloween Kills launched for free on the same day it was in cinemas. Don’t expect a similar approach in Britain though. The version of Peacock we’ll be getting over here is the free, ad-driven iteration of it, and it’s being billed as an ‘early-access’ release. A subscription version to remove the adds, as with the US, is presumably around the corner.
Furthermore, the library of available films and shows won’t be exactly the same either. That says, there’s a lot of material set to be available, and this is clearly the start of something that’ll expand. Given that at the moment it’s a free extra, it’s hard to grumble about that.
There’s no word on a UK launch date for Paramount+ as of yet, but we’ve heard rumblings it’s on its way next year. HBO Max is more tricky due to Warner Bros’ existing deals with Sky, and as such it’s likely to make it around the world before it gets a UK bow. We’ll keep you posted on all of these.
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