Sky and Virgin customers warned huge streaming service will disappear from their boxes next month

A BIG name streaming service is shutting down forever in the UK next month.

The platform featured some popular TV shows including Outlander, starring Caitríona Balfe and Sam Heughan.

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But now fans of the historical drama are left in the dark about where they’ll be able to continue watching the series.

In December, Lionsgate+ announced that it was leaving the UK market for good.

“Hope we in the uk get to see the second half as LIONSGATE UK is closing down next month,” one concerned fan wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“So I have just found out that lionsgate plus will be closing down February next year! My only concern is will any other steaming sites take on their series,” another said.

The service launched in the country in October 2022, following a rebrand from STARZPLAY.

Despite some notable programmes, such as The Great and the Power series, it appears Lionsgate+ struggled to compete with the likes of Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video.

Could more streaming sites close down?

Analysis by Jamie Harris, Senior Technology and Science Reporter at The Sun

Everyone wants to launch their own streaming service – or at least, they did.

Streaming platforms have made a big dent into traditional TV’s territory for years now but today there are just so many it would be unaffordable to subscribe to them all.

And so, you’re left with the big established players like Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video.

In many ways, it’s easier and cheaper to produce shows and sell them to platforms instead.

Sony – which doesn’t have its own major streaming service beyond niche interest Crunchyroll – made a conscious decision to steer clear of the mainstream and focus on just producing shows, which Sony Pictures Entertainment CEO described as the “right choice” given the pressures.

In the US, HBO Max and Discovery+ were fused to form a new Max app, meanwhile Disney is testing one app for it and Hulu.

Experts believe more merges are inevitable.

Affected customers should have already been informed about the app’s closure.

Sky has said those who pay for Lionsgate+ through them will have their subscription cancelled automatically so they won’t be billed after the cut off date.

“If you already have an account you’ll be contacted with details about when your subscription will end,” the firm said.

“Anybody who subscribed but didn’t activate their Lionsgate+ account will only be contacted by Sky.”

Lionsgate+ has already closed in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Benelux, the Nordics and Japan.

The service will end in the UK and Ireland on February 29.

This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk