UKTV says it delivered its strongest performance on record in 2025, with growth across VOD, linear viewing share and Share of Commercial Impacts (SOCI).
Direct-to-consumer viewing to free streaming service U rose 15% year-on-year, alongside a 23% uplift in average monthly active users and an 18% increase in registrations.
On linear, UKTV’s network share increased from 4.8% in 2024 to 4.97% in 2025, while SOCI climbed to a record 9.08% (from 8.79%).
Drama was the top genre on U, with Bergerac, Outrageous, The Marlow Murder Club, The Chelsea Detective and Whitstable Pearl the top 5 titles on the service. UKTV said Bergerac powered U’s best day ever on 2 March and was watched by 2.4 million viewers across U and U&DRAMA, making it the network’s biggest title of the year.
Andrea Amey, Chief Digital Officer, UKTV said, “2025 marked the first full year of UKTV’s transformation under our new masterbrand, U – and the results speak for themselves. Our streaming service has benefited enormously from a bold, cohesive brand identity that unites the platform with our family of TV channels.
The broadcaster also pointed to distribution gains for U, including the app’s rollout on Sky Q and Virgin TV V6, alongside the launch of U within Channel 4 streaming in January.
On social, UKTV said it delivered 758 million social video views in 2025 (+29% YoY), driving close to 400,000 visitors to U, while its revamped YouTube portfolio generated 4.1 million hours of watch time (+243%). In August 2025, shifted from channel-led brands to genre-based destinations designed for a YouTube-first audience and built around audience passions.
YouTube channels U&YESTERDAY and U&Dave were relaunched as U&Transport and U&Laughs respectively, alongside a refresh of the core U channel. The team also launched its first single-IP channel, U&Bangers & Cash, dedicated to the hit factual series.
Across the channel portfolio, UKTV reported share growth for U&alibi (+13%), U&Dave (+5%), U&YESTERDAY (+4%), U&DRAMA (+2%) and U&eden (+76%), with U&eden marking its first full year free-to-air.
