UKTV’s Watch Unveils Brand Evolution

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Watch, UKTV’s flagship entertainment channel, has revealed a new look and new strapline: “Watch… together”. Recently, Watch has established itself firmly in the ratings game, regularly besting the likes of More 4, Film 4, Virgin 1, FX, and Five USA.

Designed to reinforce Watch’s core brand positioning of “TV is better shared”, the rebrand has been unveiled to coincide with a strong fall schedule, including Primeval, Sanctuary, and Dancing with the Stars. The new look was developed by London-based creative agency Harriman Steel, who were appointed to the assignment in July.

The agency was tasked with creating a new on-air and off-air look for the channel which included 4 new idents, logo, font, colour palette, beops, eops, IPP, VT menu, blipverts, end credits, end frames and a new DOG.  The overhaul will also include new continuity for the channel. I should be able to share a bit of the new OSP with you soon, including a nicely comped montage.

The 4 new live action idents draw their inspiration from Japanese Black Theatre, a technique that pairs dance, mime and acrobatic performance to create remarkable spectacles. Tom Lucas, Director of Marketing and Communications, adds, “I was delighted with the originality and simplicity of Harriman Steel’s approach.   They have created an invaluable kit of parts and a magical and uplifting world of shared enjoyment. ”

The catchy jingle, incidentally, was composed by Erran Baron Cohen, Sacha Baron Cohen’s brother.

2009: A Look Back at Channel Rebrands Worldwide

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As you might have noticed, there was a lack of posts between the Christmas holiday as I have been traveling and spending some well deserved time with my family. And in a blink of an eye, the New Year is already upon us.

Here’s a look back (batch number one) at some of the ambitious and creative rebrands from across the US, Europe, and Asia. Don’t forget, you can click here to subscribe via email for easy updates.

Here’s to wishing you and yours a prosperous and healthy 2010.

*Updated 5 January, 2010

NBC / USA
Network Rebrand 2009

MTV / Australia
Network Rebrand 2009

Click Keep Reading For More 2009 Channel Rebrands

UKTV Completes Portfolio Rebrand with Launch of “Good Food”

Today: Over the last 18 months, UKTV and long-standing creative partner Red Bee Media have overhauled the broadcaster’s entire portfolio of ten channels, in what is the largest and most ambitious branding exercise in British broadcasting history. The final channel rebrand, Good Food (formerly UKTV Food) relaunches today, June 22.

UKTV’s Marketing and Communications Director, Tom Lucas, and Lifestyle Marketing Manager, Denise Wild, tasked Red Bee with encouraging a more diverse audience to the channel by making it feel more entertaining and less exclusively for ‘foodies’. The result? A fresh and lively rebrand that captures viewers’ universal love of food.

UKTV’s Denise Wild explains, “Developing Good Food brand identity has been a very different experience from our nine preceding rebrands.  We had to align our new multiplatform brand with the established Good Food brand with a view to creating one food superbrand, while also ensuring our TV proposition is distinct and appealing to our current UKTV Food viewers.”

“To do this, we’ve utilised the Good Food type face within our logo but altered its alignment and positioning, and also used the recognised colour palette to create an on screen presentation kit that is both fresh and modern in feel.”

Red Bee Media developed an initial package of four idents, titled “Stir Fry”, “Wild Food”, “Dinner Party” and “Sunday Roast” that capture the energy, the fun and the social aspect that comes across when eating and preparing food.

Alongside the idents, the company also produced a full OSP kit – including all navigation menus, blips, which are momentary on-screen interruptions and break bumpers for the channel – and a launch promo (10 sec, 30 sec and 60 sec versions) that is currently playing across all 17 UKTV and Virgin TV channels.  An off-air marketing campaign is planned for Q4 2009 to support a raft of new commissions and acquisitions that will premiere from September.

Andy Bryant, Director, Creative at Red Bee Media comments, “Changing the face of UKTV has demonstrated how a distinctive and relevant brand identity is one of the more potent and effective options available to broadcasters to achieve audience and revenue growth. Our work with UKTV has already delivered real financial payback in a fiercely competitive television market place.”

UKTV Launches New Lifestyle Channel “Really” Brand Campaign

Today: UKTV has unveiled the new on-air branding campaign for Really, the newly rebranded UKTV Gardens channel. The “pop art style” brand campaign is supported by Really’s new end line, “You couldn’t make it up”. UKTV’s new lifestyle channel offers an honest insight into people’s lives. Targeting predominately women aged 18-35, Really offers a point of difference with feisty, straight talking and good natured programming.

New television ads will air across the UKTV network, Virgin TV and Sky channels.

Update 19 May: Due to the large number of visitors, emails, and comments asking about gardening related programming, it should be noted that the gardening content previously aired when it was called UKTV Gardens, has now been absorbed by sister channel Home, previously named UKTV Style.

The channel aims to bring glamour, attitude, and fun to viewers, starting with tonight’s premier of Rachel Zoe Project. I have to admit, I love that show- top of my season pass list on my DVR in Los Angeles. Love her or hate her, Rachel Zoe is something to behold. (And an absolute hoot to work with).

A national survey of 2,000 Brits was specially commissioned to mark the launch of new TV channel,  uncovering the lies people tell over a lifetime as well as those told on a daily basis to provide a compelling insight into Britain in 2009.

The findings reveal that age is the No.1 lifetime lie – suggesting that Brits simply can’t resist playing fast and loose with the statistics when it comes to telling people how old they are.  36% of Brits admit that they have regularly lied about their age. Unexpectedly, the survey also reveals that men are the biggest gossips, with 20% admitting that they generally can’t keep a big secret for more than one day compared with a mere 6% of women.

Clare Laycock, Really Channel Head states, “Our findings prove that we are a sensationalist nation and Brits love to share a secret about others, but tend to lie in order to protect their own image. Really is bang on trend, giving an insight into the lives of the British public through smart, straight talking programmes and stories that you just couldn’t make up”

Designed to depict those “Really moments” of transformation or empowerment for women, the channel branding package, created by Red Bee Media, launches with a new logo, four idents, endboards, break bumpers, a full on-screen presentation system and promotional kit plus a 60/30/10 second launch promo. The bright pop art style provides a lush framework to the channel’s glamorous programming lineup.

Special thanks to Denise Wild, UKTV’s talented Lifestyle Marketing Manager who sent me all of the idents seen today, including which could be the first gay kiss animated or otherwise in a television ident as seen here:

UKTV Completes Rebrand of Channels with “Good Food”

UKTV Food will be rebranded as “Good Food”, following on the launch of such channels as Blighty, Dave, Eden, and Yesterday. In doing so, UKTV has signed a license deal with BBC Worldwide, owner of Good Food Magazine and Good Food Event Brand, to be able to use the mark for on-air and on-line identity. The name change will complete the digital broadcaster’s rebranding of its portfolio, dropping the UKTV brand name from its channels and positioning them as multi-platform brands across TV and online.

The channel relaunches on June 22 at 9AM with the tagline “We have fun with food”, and is targeted to 25-44 year old food lovers rather than hobby cooks. The new Good Food website will be located at http://www.goodfoodchannel.co.uk

UKTV controller Matthew Littleford said the rebrand of UKTV Food was a different approach to its other relauches and allows it to benefit from the “heritage and credibility” associated with the existing Good Food brand. “By relaunching our new food channel as Good Food, UKTV gains valuable brand equity while also completing our ambitious 18-month strategy to create a network of truly multi-platform brands,” he said.

This is the first channel UKTV has rebranded using an existing brand. It started a rebrand of all of its channels last year with it’s first relaunch as Dave 18 months ago.

First Look: UKTV Style Rebrands as Home

UKTV Style officially rebrands as Home in 1 week as  “a new channel packed with inspirational home and gardens programming”.

Home officially launches at 9AM on Thursday April 30, 2009. Here’s an early look at one of the new channel spots. Thanks to Wez/UKTV.

You can read more about “Style” rebranding as “Home” and “Gardens” relaunching as “Really” in my previous post here.

UKTV Gardens Rebranding as “Really”, Style becomes “Home”

UKTV Style and UKTV Gardens will be relaunched as “Home” and “Really” respectively as UKTV continues it’s ambitious brand overhaul of its channel portfolio. No details have yet been officially announced regarding UKTV Food.

Update 19 May: Really has launched! Breaking news here: https://dennytu.wordpress.com/2009/05/19/really/

Update 19 May (2): It should be noted that the gardening content which it previously aired when it was called UKTV Gardens, has now been absorbed by sister channel Home, previously named UKTV Style.

Home will target 35-54 year old viewers with inspirational home and gardens programming. Shows will include DIY SOS, Escape to the Country, Groundforce and the flagship Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. It is designed to show viewers “how to enjoy and maximise their space, both inside and out” and will have the tag line: “Home – there’s no place like it”. The website will be http://www.lovehome.co.uk

Really is providing honest insight into people’s lives, offering “feisty, straight-talking and good natured programming targeted to female-skewing channel targeting 18 to 35 year olds.” Jane Mote, UKTV Director of factual, lifestyle and new media, explains that the positioning will be “zeitgeisty and noisy female brand”. From Baby Borrowers, Extraordinary Breastfeeding and The Rachel Zoe Project to Freaky Eaters and Say No To The Knife, Really might raise a few eyebrows, but it’ll definitely get you talking.

The tag line is: “Really. You couldn’t make it up”. The website will be http://www.isitreally.co.uk

Really launches May 19th. Really.

Exclusive: Yesterday Promo Launch Spot First Look

So when I got an email this morning from UKTV Brand and Marketing maven Sara Holt, I saw the words “I am loving your blog”.  I scrolled down my Blackberry in hopes of finding something delicious, and so I did.  First, if you’re a fan of Ted Baker or the Blighty Campaign, I’d recommend you check out Ted’s Blog, where you’ll find the rest of the Blighty idents:

http://www.tedbakerblog.com/

Yesterday fans are in luck as Sara has provided a promo launch spot as an exclusive first look in anticipation of the March 2nd launch of the channel. Here’s the spot in WMV as well as:

Enjoy! Check back later today and through the weekend for the latest news on the launch idents.

If you don’t want to keep hitting refresh, click here to subscribe to the blog via email.

Denny

UKTV / Blighty Poster Campaign

Ahh… good old poster advertising. London Ad Agency Watermill (the team behind the Blighty national poster, magazine, and newspaper campaign) sent me over shots of the guerilla poster series promoting the launch of the much talked about new channel. You gotta hand it to ’em, the search engine terms for “Blighty Advertising Poster”, “UKTV Blighty National Poster” and “Loveblighty.co.uk Poster” are up 300% since last week.

Blighty Launch Poster Campaign

Here they are, immortalized for your exclusive viewing. Post no bills? No way! I’m not sure if I’m supposed to show these but…  how else do these things become viral?

It showed up like this, don't ask me!

Blighty National Poster Campaign

I think the last time I posted about an outdoor TV channel campaign was for BBDO’s work for BBC World. Remember these?

UKTV History relaunches as Yesterday on March 2

In just less than 1 week, the “past becomes present” when UKTV History channel rebrands as Yesterday, culminating in the last of UKTV’s factual channels to be renamed and rebranded. Yesterday targets upmarket 30 plus couples, placing serious history in the form of Andrew Marr’s History of Modern Britain and Auschwitz in the same schedule as The Alan Clark Diaries, House of Cards and Antiques Roadshow.

The complimentary website http//www.visityesterday.co.uk launches on March 2nd as well. UKTV’s Director of Factual, Lifestyle and New Media, Jane Mote, says, “Yesterday will challenge traditional beliefs of what a history channel should be by taking a more inclusive, accessible and entertaining approach to the past and making it more immediate and relevant to viewers.”

It is a process that began with UKTV G2 being successfully rebranded by Red Bee as Dave 18 months ago, UKTV has spent a great deal of time and care on the multiplatform brand portfolio, which just saw the launch of Blighty (from UKTV People) one week ago:

Comfort brands are reportedly faring well in these uncertain times. The decidedly “feel-good” relaunches should be a welcome sight to viewers. I mean comon, who didn’t smile at that Eden launch spot? And if you didn’t, the iceberg sculpture with a polar bear and cub floating down the River Thames should have at least been smirk inducing.

Matthew Littleford, UKTV’s controller, explains: “We realized that because we had strong content we needed to have kick-ass brands that would stand out,” he says, stressing the importance of UKTV’s access to BBC programming.” The figures are impressive: six months of research, 32 focus groups, consultation with 120 staff members and 3,500 online respondents, £250,000 spent. Littleford adds, “All of the research about History was that people who came to watch it would be interested in 20th-century history and war. The history channel isn’t just about that,” he says. “We wanted a brand that stretched wider.”

“The whole point of Yesterday is to make history feel more immediate and more personal,” explained Yesterday channel head Richard Kingsbury.

The process has already begun for the UKTV Gardens, UKTV Food and UKTV Style rebrands in the spring. Following their recent launch, both factual channels Eden and Blighty saw their audiences and share more than double as a result of their rebrands, increasing share by 99% and 64% respectively versus 2008 average.

Yesterday’s tagline is “Where the Past is Always Present”.

The holding page and :10 Yesterday Spot can be seen at

http://uktv.co.uk/holdingpage/yesterday/

I’ll have a lot more to share about Yesterday come launch next Monday (I love these Yesterday word pretzels!)

Maybe UKTV Marketing topper Mr. Lucas will make another surprise blog appearance here. You’ll just have to hope. Stay tuned!

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