Apple TV Plus Comedy Trying Lands on BBC for UK Audience
Soon, viewers in the UK will be able to watch the Apple TV Plus comedy series Trying without needing a subscription, though they will require a standard TV license. The BBC has secured the rights to the first three seasons of the show. The series will be broadcast on BBC television channels and made available for streaming on BBC iPlayer starting September 8.
Reports indicate this agreement includes an option for the BBC to acquire future seasons of Trying. Interestingly, the show is produced by a commercial subsidiary of the BBC itself. Apple recently gave the green light for a fifth season of the popular sitcom.
This move represents the first instance of the BBC acquiring an Apple TV Plus original series. However, such licensing deals are becoming increasingly common in the industry. The BBCs competitor, ITV, secured the rights to the Apple drama Suspicion for its own ITVX streaming service earlier this year. That deal was reportedly brokered by the sales distributor Fifth Season. The same company was also shopping other Apple TV Plus titles, including See, Roar, and Servant, to various buyers last year.
This trend highlights a broader shift in how streaming services and production companies manage their content libraries. There is a growing strategy to license shows to other platforms to expand their audience reach and generate additional revenue streams. This is not a new concept. A few years ago, Warner Bros. Discovery removed several shows, like Westworld, from its Max streaming service to instead license them to free, ad-supported streaming platforms. In a similar vein, the BBC itself has a partnership with Disney Plus to stream new episodes of Doctor Who to international audiences outside the UK.
The arrival of Trying on the BBC provides a new way for UK audiences to discover the acclaimed comedy, potentially introducing the show to a much wider viewer base.
